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Alleged Slayer of Jews in Yugoslavia May Be Deported from U.S.

October 18, 1954
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The Supreme Court this week-end cleared the way for the deportation of Andrija Artukovic, Croatian Nazi collaborator who played a leading role in the mass murder of Yugoslavian Jewry.

The Court rejected Artukovic’s appeal from a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision that a 1902 extradition treaty is still valid. Yugoslavia is seeking to bring Artukovic to trial for war crimes against Jews and others. Major Jewish organizations have followed the case closely and submitted evidence against Artukovic.

Artukovic came to the United States in 1948 under a false name with the claim that he was a “refugee from Communism.” He was arrested in 1951 when his true identity was learned. The State Department said Yugoslavia was entitled to seek his extradition under a 1902 treaty between the United States and Serbia. But the Los Angeles Federal District Court upheld Artukovic’s contention that no lawful treaty exists. The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later ruled against Artukovic who then appealed to the Supreme Court.

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