NATO swoops on Karadzic home

Bosnian Serb investigators secure the entrance of Karadzic's house in Pale

PALE, Bosnia -- NATO-led troops have raided the empty house of Bosnian war crimes suspect Radovan Karadzic.

Helicopter-borne French troops from the Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina (SFOR) forced open the gate of the 15-room house in Pale before dawn on Tuesday.

The former Bosnian Serb president, who is wanted on genocide charges was not there. He has been on the run with a $23 million bounty on his head since the war in Bosnia ended in 1995.

An SFOR statement issued to CNN confirmed the search, saying the house was "suspected of being associated with an illegal smuggling network."

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It said a housekeeper was questioned and later released and peacekeepers seized "forged documents and a small number of firearms."

The housekeeper, 66-year-old Rade Glavonjic, said about 30 NATO soldiers arrived shortly after 3 a.m. (0200 BST).

He told The Associated Press: "Helicopters woke me up and when I looked through the window. I went down to open the gate but they broke in, threw me on the ground and tied me up."

He said the soldiers searched the house for about 90 minutes, smashing furniture.

The house, on the outskirts of what was once the "capital" of the breakaway Bosnian Serb Republic, has been empty behind its high garden walls for more than five years.

Karadzic: Wanted and on the run

Reuters said Karadzic's wife, Ljiljana Zelen-Karadzic, later arrived to inspect the damage. "It's quite clear that Radovan cannot hide under the carpet or behind the paintings," she said.

"They took some pictures, floppy disks, some videotapes of celebrations. They tried to break into the attic but they could not do so as it was closed. We are building a new floor.

"They could have done it in a more proper way. They have met me on several occasions. They could have asked for the keys and done it in a peaceful manner in the presence of family members."

Karadzic was indicted by the War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague six years ago over the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of up to 8,000 Muslim men and boys. (Profile)

SFOR tried to seize him in eastern Bosnia in February and March without success.

Karadzic and his former military chief Ratko Mladic were among 23 war crimes suspects on a Yugoslav government most-wanted list.

In April only six of them obeyed an order to surrender to the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague, where former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic is standing trial.