ZAGREB, Oct 2, 2008 (AFP) - A former Croat general wanted for embezzling more than five million dollars (3.25 million euros) was in custody at Vienna airport Thursday ahead of extradition to Zagreb, the HINA news agency reported.

Vladimir Zagorec was transferred from a Vienna prison to the Austrian capital's airport from where he was to be flown to Zagreb later on Thursday, the state-run agency quoted his lawyer as saying.

Zagorec, 44, was to arrive on board a private plane escorted by Interpol officials, lawyer Zvonimir Hodak said.

Upon his arrival, Zagorec is to be immediately transferred to a prison and later be questioned by an investigative judge of the Zagreb county court.

Zagorec, detained in Vienna last Friday, is accused of stealing more than five million dollars while he was Croatia's deputy minister of defence between 1993 and 2000.

He was unsuccessfully fighting extradition for months through the Austrian courts.

Zagorec, who has an estimated fortune of 26 million euros, arrived in Austria in 2000 and had been working as a property developer.

He was arrested in March last year on an international warrant issued by the Croatian judiciary for alleged embezzlement dating back to Croatia's 1991-1995 independence war from the former Yugoslavia, when he was in charge of arms procurement.

Zagorec had been on bail of one million euros while he fought his extradition up to the Austrian supreme court, saying his fundamental rights had not been respected.

The court turned down his last appeal in March.

Croatian authorities have repeatedly pledged they would bring to justice wartime profiteers.