North Macedonia investigates former top officials for alleged financial misconduct

SKOPJE, North Macedonia — Eight former senior officials in North Macedonia, including a former prime minister, are under investigation for alleged financial misconduct regarding gambling licences of a state lottery company approved under the previous government, officials said Monday.

Interior Minister Panche Toshkovski did not name any of the officials under investigation but told reporters that “They include a former prime minister, a former deputy prime minister, a former director of a legal entity, and a former secretary general … The rest are civil servants working for one of the legal entities involved.”

State-run television reported that former Dimitar Kovachevski — who served as a Social Democrat prime minister between 2022 and 2024 — and his deputy, Artan Grubi, are among those under investigation.

The conservative VMRO-DPMNE party leads the current government after winning a decisive general election victory in May.

The investigation into financial damage worth an estimated 8.2 million euros was announced Monday after police searched nine separate locations in recent days. None of the implicated officials have been arrested or issued any public comment.