BELGRADE, Serbia, March 17 (UPI) -- The wife of Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic won't attend his funeral because she is apparently afraid she will be detained by authorities if she does.
Milorad Vucelic, vice president of Milosevic's Socialist Party of Serbia, told Belgrade media Friday the family will not travel to Serbia for the burial of Milosevic at his home in Pozarevac, 50 miles southeast of Belgrade.
Earlier in the week, Milosevic's wife, Mira Markovic, his son Marko and daughter Marija had been expected to attend Saturday's service. But the Belgrade District Court Thursday issued a warrant demanding Markovic appear in court March 23 for a preliminary hearing on corruption charges. The warrant was sent to police stations at border crossings, including Belgrade's airport.
If Markovic fails to appear before the court, she would be taken into custody, the court said.
Markovic and Marko Milosevic fled the country after Slobodan Milosevic lost power in 2000 and have settled in Moscow. Marija Milosevic lives in Montenegro.
Milosevic died of a heart attack March 11 in a prison cell of the U.N. tribunal in The Hague where he had been on trial on genocide and war crimes charges in the former Yugoslavia.
