Police crack down on criminal group involved in drug trafficking

Skopje, 19 January 2025 (MIA) - Following a several-month long criminal investigation, the police in coordinated operation on Saturday and Sunday cracked down on an organized criminal group from Skopje involved in drug trafficking.

"The criminal group has been involved for a longer period of time in committing crimes in the area of illegal drug trafficking. There are reasonable suspicions that the organizer of the criminal group, through its members, distributed and sold narcotic drugs directly to users on the street," the Ministry of Interior said in a press release on Sunday.

After obtaining search warrants issued by a pre-trial judge, police searched 16 people at 21 locations in Skopje and Gevgelija.

During the searches, the police seized many items, which will undergo forensic examination. Among the items seized are several large and small packages of a powdery substance.

The Ministry of Interior said criminal charges will be filed with the competent Public Prosecutor's Office on Sunday against 14 people, who will be brought before a pre-trial judge.

Given that operational and tactical activities are still ongoing in coordination with a competent public prosecutor, the Ministry notes that further details will be available to the public soon.