Skopje, 4 December 2025 (MIA) — During the hearings for the Pulse case at the Idrizovo prison's high-security courtroom earlier Thursday, the defense of the three former Kochani mayors charged with endangering public safety by allowing the unlicensed nightclub to operate claimed none of them were directly linked to the tragedy.

Former Kochani mayor Ratko Dimitrovski's defense lawyer Angela Sokolova said that during his time in office, from 2012 to 2017, he had been the only one who had spoken out against the light-industry zone facility being turned into a hospitality venue even before it started operating as a nightclub.

"He is the only person who reported it to the competent institutions," Sokolova said, adding that the Municipality of Kochani, with Dimitrovski at the helm, had refused a parking lot permit to the Pulse owner in 2012 and had filed a request against its being given a license to operate as a nightclub.

"The question remains why this request was ignored," Sokolova said, stressing that the request had never been withdrawn.

The legal counsel of former Kochani mayors Nikolcho Ilijev and Ljupcho Papazov said their clients had acted in accordance with the law and their competences.

Ilijev's defense lawyer Sinisha Stankovikj said that Ilijev had served as mayor from 2017 to 2021 and the proceedings were being conducted three and a half years after his term in office ended.

"He never received any information about the cabaret and never had any contact with its owner," Stankovikj said, denying any connection between his client and the nightclub.

Papazov's defense lawyer Mite Levkov said the proceedings were marked by an immense tragedy but convicting an innocent person would be "a second tragedy."

He said inspectors were the individuals responsible for inspections and making sure regulations were followed. "The mayor does not have the knowledge or authority to determine flaws in the facility ad hoc but depends on information and reports by professionals. He is not a construction, market or fire protection inspector," Levkov said.

Papazov, who served as Kochani mayor from 2021 to 2024, said he had resigned for moral reasons after doing what he could to help in the tragedy's aftermath.

Dimitrovski, Ilijev and Papazov are accused of knowingly ignoring public safety regulations related to the Pulse nightclub in Kochani. Despite being aware the venue was unsafe, they did nothing to sanction or close the facility, which violated several laws including the Law on Local Self-Government, the Law on Inspection Supervision and the Law on Protection and Rescue, according to the indictment.

Previously, the indicted municipal construction inspectors' defense said the fire had not been caused by any construction flaws and the inspectors had not carried out site inspections as no one had filed any complaints or issued any inspection orders they could follow.

The fire that broke out in the Pulse nightclub in Kochani on March 16 killed 63 people and injured over 200. The venue was packed with mostly young people attending a concert by hip-hop duo DNK when sparks from pyrotechnic devices set the ceiling on fire.

Judge Diana Gruevska Ilievska is presiding over the trial. The prosecution, represented by a team of 15 public prosecutors, said evidence would show that the Pulse 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. The hearings will resume on Dec. 10. mr/

Фото: МИА