With closing words before Basic Criminal Court Skopje the trial against the three policemen from Kočani was completed today – Kire Bogatinov, Goran Lazarov and Alexander Temelkovaccused of dereliction of duty.
The prosecution sought a guilty verdict, while the defense insisted on acquittal, arguing that guilt had not been proven. The court announced that the verdict will be announced on May 5.
The public prosecutor Spasenka Andonova in the closing speech he emphasized that the evidence presented during the procedure confirms the chronology of the events and the omissions of the accused.
According to the indictment, in the period from October 2023 to February 2024, Bogatinov and Lazarov did not fully follow the action plans during inspections of the “Pulse” cabaret in Kočani, and did not perform their official duties and did not initiate criminal proceedings against the legal entity “MMMM Cafe” LLC.
The prosecution claims that they accepted oral statements from an unauthorized person and did not request appropriate documentation, which resulted in obtaining a property benefit.
Regarding the third accused Temelkov, the prosecutor’s office states that he did not check the entire documentation when approving the requests for initiation of proceedings, although he was obliged to do so.
The defense, on the other hand, rejected all the accusations, assessing that the evidence does not confirm a criminal act or the existence of property benefit. The defense attorneys pointed out that the defendants could not violate an obligation that was not within their competence.
The defendants stated in their addresses before the court that they acted in accordance with the law and that they do not feel guilty.
Temelkov’s defense considered that these were “flat accusations”, without evidence of direct intent.
