Bratislav Dikic

One of the eight Serbian citizens convicted in the "coup" case in Montenegro, Branka Milic, is still in the Serbian embassy in Podgorica, while the other convicted Serbian citizens have left Montenegro for Serbia, the defence lawyer in the case, Jugoslav Krpovic, confirmed on Monday.

The Higher Court in Montenegro on Thursday sentenced 13 people, including two Russian military intelligence officers and two opposition leaders, to up to 15 years in prison for staging an attempted coup in 2016.

They were found guilty of plotting to commit "terrorist acts" and undermine the constitutional order of Montenegro during the parliamentary elections in October 2016.

Montenegro's main opposition alliance, the Democratic Front, accused the court and prosecution in Podgorica of negligence, alleging that Sasa Sindjelic had been allowed to abscond so he can avoid serving a 21-year jail sentence in Croatia.

The Democratic Front claimed on Monday that Sindjelic has left the country and is reportedly in Serbia.

Former Serbian Gendarmerie Commander Bratislav Dikic, who is on trial in Montenegro over the alleged coup attempt of October 2016, started refusing food, water, and medical assistance on Wednesday.

A key witness in the trial for the alleged election-day coup plot in Montenegro, Sasa Sindjelic, is expected to give evidence before the court in Podgorica on Wednesday - his first public appearance since the launch of the case, which has been shadowed by conspiracy theories.

Former Serbian Gendarmerie Commander Bratislav Dikic said on Wednesday that the coup charges against him had been "invented" - and that he would never have planned to commit a terrorist attack in Montenegro.

The trial in the coup plot case is to resume on Wednesday with the Montenegrin public eager to hear the evidence of the prosecution, which is seeking to prove that the two Russian intelligence agents were involved in a covert scheme to prevent Montenegro from joining NATO.

A former top general in Serbia's elite Gendarmerie unit, Bratislav Dikic, on Wednesday denied having backed an alleged coup plot in Montenegro during the elections in the republic last October.

Dikic told the court in Podgorica at the pre-trial session that he was a victim of the "fabricated charges" of the Montenegrin Special Prosecution.

The trial in Montenegro in the alleged coup case is scheduled to open on Friday once the High Court in Podgorica confirms the indictment against 14 people, including the two opposition leaders, Andrija Mandic and Milan Knezevic.

The "Russian state" orchestrated an attempted coup on October 16 in Montenegro in a bid to stop the Balkan country from joining NATO, Montenegrin Prosecutor Milivoje Katnic said on Sunday.