site.btaSix Indictments in High-Profile Skopje Cancer Clinic Case

The Basic Criminal Court in Skopje accepted the indictment of the prosecution in a high-profile cancer clinic case. The case caused an outrage in the Republic of North Macedonia in the autumn of 2023, following a journalistic investigation into allegations of misconduct at the University Clinic of Radiotherapy and Oncology in Skopje.

The court's announcement said that the case is to be assigned to a judge and then a hearing is to be scheduled.

In mid-May the prosecutor on the case, Ana Gogovska-Jakimovska, announced the investigation had been completed and the prosecution had filed two indictments with the Criminal Court in Skopje.

The first indictment, which is related to the economic operations of the Clinic involves two individuals. The first is a medical director and the other an administrative director of the Clinic, and both were charged with abuse of official position and authority, fraud in office and embezzlement.

The second indictment is related to the treatment of patients and involves four oncologists, including the former director, who has been accused of serious crimes against human health and delay in treating patients.

Most of the criminal offenses, abuse of official position, fraud and embezzlement, were committed in the period from 2018 to 2022 and the accused managed to secure significant benefits for others to the amount of 2.2 billion denars (close to EUR 36 million).

Journalistic reports published in the North Macedonian weekly Fokus in May 2023 caused the scandal in September. Protests outside the government headquarters and the Health Ministry in Skopje followed, a special commission of inquiry was established in parliament, and the police and prosecutor's office launched an investigation.