The preliminary procedure judge at the Basic Criminal Court in Skopje has ordered pre-trial detention and precautionary measures for four people. They are involved in the investigation into criminal association, money laundering and extortion in Kumanovo. The decisions were taken at the request of the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office for Prosecution of Organized Crime and Corruption.
The suspects were heard in the presence of their defense lawyers, the court announced. The public prosecutor’s proposals were accepted. Pre-trial detention of up to 30 days was imposed on two of the suspects.
The other two were given lighter security measures. The court clarifies that the detention decision was based on Article 165, paragraph 1, items 1, 2 and 3 of the Law on Criminal Procedure. This article covers the risk of flight, the risk of repetition or completion of the criminal offense, and the risk of obstructing the investigation through influencing witnesses.
Suspects D.P. and M.K. will remain in pre-trial detention for up to 30 days. L.K. was placed under house arrest. D.Zh. was subject to supervisory measures, namely the confiscation of his travel document and a ban on issuing a new travel document for crossing the state border.
The Basic Criminal Court in Skopje made known that the Public Prosecutor’s Office’s request also includes one other person. He is currently unavailable to law enforcement authorities. The parties have the right to appeal the decisions taken by the Criminal Council of the Basic Criminal Court in Skopje.
Earlier, the Ministry of Interior announced that criminal complaints had been filed against five people. They concern the criminal offenses of “extortion” and “money laundering and other proceeds from a criminal offense”. The complaints followed a coordinated police operation carried out one day earlier.
The operation was carried out by the Department for Suppression of Organized and Serious Crime in the Ministry of Interior, under the direction of a public prosecutor from the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office for Prosecution of Organized Crime and Corruption. During the operation, an organized criminal group with five members from Kumanovo was targeted.
According to the Ministry of Interior, during the intervention D.P. (37), L.K. (73), M.K. (27) and D.Zh. (43), all from Kumanovo, were deprived of their liberty. The fifth suspect, Z.R. (35), remains unavailable to law enforcement authorities. The investigation is ongoing, while the authorities have not provided further details about the circumstances of the criminal offenses attributed to the suspects.