Skopje, 28 October 2025 (MIA) — The Public Prosecutor's Office is conducting a criminal investigation against the city's public sanitation company Communal Hygiene director Sabahadin Rustemi and its waste manager Aki Saiti, who were detained Monday over suspicions of environmental crime.

The PPO requested the Skopje Criminal Court issue a detention order against the two to prevent them from repeating the crime or potential witness tampering.

Rustemi and Saiti are suspected of endangering the environment and nature with waste under Article 230 of the Criminal Code.

According to the PPO, the suspects violated the Law on Waste Management and did not perform their duty to regularly collect and transport Skopje's municipal waste and keep the city clean.

By improperly managing the city's waste, they contributed to the creation of illegal dumping sites in public spaces and streets surrounding the city's dumpsters, which led to a significant deterioration of the quality of the soil, air and water, putting people's life and health at risk of infection with various pathogens, the PPO said.

These suspicions were confrmed by local environmental inspectors as well as public health experts, it said.

The PPO launched the investigation into the management of the capital city's sanitation services after uncollected trash piled up on sidewalks and streets throughout Skopje in recent weeks, which prompted health authorities to issue recommendations on protecting residents from infectious waste. mr/