Skopje, 4 December 2025 (MIA) — The hearing of the three municipal construction inspectors accused of endangering public safety by failing to conduct inspections of Kochani's Pulse despite knowing it was unfit to operate as a nightclub began at the Idrizovo prison's high-security courtroom Thursday.

Offering their condolences to the bereaved families, the indicted inspectors' defense lawyers in their opening statements said the March 16 fire had not been caused by any construction flaws and the inspectors had not carried out inspections of the site as no one had filed any complaints or issued any inspection orders.

Defendant Ljupcho Stamenkov's lawyer Jovan Tanchev said the defense would prove that Stamenkov had not been aware of the venue's operating as an unlicensed nightclub because he lived and worked in Skopje in recent years.

"We will prove that during the period when he was employed by the Municipality of Kochani, not a single natural or legal person had filed a complaint that could be acted on," Tanchev said.

Defendant Ognjen Georgiev's defense lawyer Zoran Zafirovski said the statute of limitations had expired on the case against Georgiev. 

Moreover, Zafirovski said, the defense was set to prove that the tragedy was not due to any construction flaws an inspector could officially inspect. He said the owner had done only "landscaping and renovation work" without reporting it and this was not subject to inspection.

Regarding defendant Nikolcho Kocev, whom he also represents, Zafirovski said witness testimony would show Kocev had never received any complaints or inspection orders, either. Also, according to him, Kocev was not a construction inspector 30 years ago when the facility was built and he could not inspect the renovation works done subsequently.

Kocev offered his condolences to the families. "That evening I was in the hospital and helped until late at night. It is not a moment I can forget," he said, adding that he had been accused of a crime he did not commit.

"I believe the court will see the difference between a perpetrator and a victim of systemic failure," he said.

According to the indictment, Stamenkov, Georgiev and Kocev in their capacity of municipal construction inspectors in Kochani between 2005 and 2024 had knowingly failed to perform their duties, allowing the Pulse nightclub to operate without meeting any safety standards.

On March 16, sparks from pyrotechnic devices set the ceiling on fire in the overcrowded venue during a concert by hip-hop duo DNK in Kochani, claiming 63 lives and injuring over 200.

Judge Diana Gruevska Ilievska is presiding over the Pulse trial. The prosecution, represented by a team of 15 public prosecutors, said evidence would show that the nighclub was a death trap from the beginning, the result of systemic negligence and a series of institutional failures.

Thirty-four people and three legal entities have been charged over the deadly fire, including owners, managers, inspectors, former mayors, security guards and civil servants. mr/