Skopje, 26 March 2025 (MIA) - The measure “effective detention” for the former mayors of Kochani, Ratko Dimitrievski and Nikolcho Ilijev has been replaced with house detention, according to a decision by the Basic Court in Kochani following appeals by the 17 suspects for the deadly “Pulse” nightclub fire in Kochani. The Court also ordered house arrest for the former head of the State Market Inspectorate.

The appeals of the remaining 14 suspects have been rejected, and their detention will continue to be enforced.

The Prosecutor’s Office said it appealed the Court’s decision at the Appellate Court in Shtip, requesting that the measure “effective detention” be reinstated for the two mayors.

The current Mayor of Kochani, Ljupcho Papazov, who submitted his resignation a day after the fire, remains in detention.

The fire at the “Pulse” nightclub in Kochani killed 59 people and left around 200 injured on March 16.

Photo: MIA Archive