Former Croatian premier convicted of graft ZAGREB, Croatia - A court on Tuesday convicted Ivo Sanader, former Croatian prime minister, of graft and sentenced him to 10 years in prison. Sanader, 59, who served as prime minister from 2004 to 2009, is the highest ranking former government official to ever be tried for corruption in Croatia, which has pledged to root out graft as it becomes an EU member in July 2013. Judges found Sanader guilty of accepting a €10m bribe from Hungarian oil company MOL in return for securing it controlling rights in Croatia's state oil company INA, and receiving €545,000 in kickbacks for a lucrative credit deal with Hypo Alpe Adria that gave the Austrian bank a leading position on the Croatian market. Sanader appeared emotionless as he sat in the courtroom as the verdict was read. "Did you understand the verdict?"" Ivan Turdic, the head of a three-judge panel, asked. "You have been declared guilty on both counts of the indictment."" He added that "nothing outside this court influenced the verdict which was brought based on the evidence presented in the court." Sanader, who abruptly resigned as premier on July 1 2009, maintained his innocence during the one-year trial. He alleged the charges against him were politically motivated and designed to keep him from returning to high office. He was detained in Austria in December 2010, after Croatian authorities issued an international arrest warrant for him as he allegedly tried to flee from there to the US.