Skopje, 14 October 2024 (MIA) - The testimony of Zorica Gjorchevska, the mother of the kidnapped and murdered 14-year-old Vanja Gjorchevska, continued Monday with cross-examinations from the defendants and their lawyers at the Criminal Court in Skopje.

In response to a cross-examination by the lawyer of Ljupcho Palevski, the mother of the murdered Vanja Gjorchevska stated that she does not know him personally, but she knows who he is.

Her father bought an apartment from him, located on “Naum Naumovski Borche” street, where the kidnapping took place. She responded that she is not aware of any disagreements between them; if there had been, her father would have stepped away.

In response to judge Ivica Stefanovski’s request to specify from what moment Vanja’s father claimed that she was kidnapped, she replied:

"From the first moment, but when that first moment was, I don’t know. On November 27, when Vanja went missing, he began to claim in the afternoon that she had been kidnapped and then he didn’t stop saying it the whole time."

“How much did you deposit into the account from the apartment in Aerodrom that you sold last year?” asked the judge.

Vanja’s mother replies that she deposited 30,000 euros from the sale of that apartment, for which she received 80,000 euros. She mentioned that she used 50,000 euros to pay off her credit card debt and bought a car. She also stated that she still owns two more apartments.

Following the testimony of the mother of the murdered girl, Ana Kirkova, the daughter of the kidnapped and murdered Panche Zhezhovski, took the stand to testify.

“He knew Velibor Manev. It’s a five-minute drive from our place and a ten-minute walk to his. I know Manev’s house. My father hired him to do construction work for us at home,” Kirkova testified.

“My father didn’t call for two days. He had no debts. He lived modestly on his pension. He had a dispute over some tiles with Velibor Manev, but that was a long time ago; I don’t remember,” she continued with her testimony.

Palevski asked her if her father had mentioned anything about him.

“No, my father didn’t talk to me about his friends, and I don’t know you,” Kirkova replied.

The judge further questioned what work the accused Velibor Manev had done for Panche and the reason for the lawsuit, to which the daughter replied that he was laying tiles, but she didn’t remember the specifics of the lawsuit because it had been a long time ago.

The trial has ended for today and will resume on Wednesday.

During the previous hearing, the defendants declared that they do not feel guilty and that their defense will present additional evidence.

The indictment states that they had planned the kidnapping of the 14-year-old girl to compel a member of her immediate family to provide a ransom.

The Criminal Court approved the indictments and, at the request of the Prosecution, decided to merge the trials of all defendants, including Palevski, Bore Videvski, Velibor Manev and Vlatko Keshishov, as well as Vanja's father Aleksandar Gjorchevski.

Another person, indicted for aiding and abetting, will be tried in separate proceedings.

Vanja Gjorchevska and Panche Zhezhovski, who were reported missing in late November, were found dead near Skopje and Veles on December 3, 2023.

Photo: MIA