Gordana Drenkoska says two years of wrongful suspicion followed arrest over Dr. Aco Trpovski’s death
Drenkoska says her husband fell ill and died amid two years of suspicion; prosecutors say they had no legal duty to notify the couple.
A woman from Skopje says she and her husband were arrested a week after family doctor Aco Trpovski was found dead in his car in March 2024, then released because authorities said there was no evidence. For more than two years the couple lived under the cloud of suspicion; now, after her husband’s death, Gordana Drenkoska has spoken publicly about the toll it took.
Documents, seized car and unanswered requests
According to documents Drenkoska provided, Prosecutor Anel Fidoski issued an order to keep seized items and the Fiat Panda registered to the Drenkoski family at the Agency for Management of Seized Property until the criminal proceedings are completed. The order is dated February 25, 2025 — almost a year after the killing — but Drenkoska says answers did not come even after more than two years had passed.
Her lawyer, Thea Dameva, repeatedly asked to inspect the case file and sent urgencies to Prosecutor Nenad Saveski and to chief prosecutor Natasha Krstevska Caleva, yet Drenkoska says they received no responses. The investigation was later reassigned after a change of office leadership and prosecutor Elena Jakula took over the case.
During that period, Drenkoska’s husband became seriously ill with cancer and died. Drenkoska recounts the strain of living under suspicion and the shame her husband could not bear. In her words, translated from her interview: "My husband also died of stress, he could not come to terms with the shame. When he died in my arms his last words were justice justice justice," says Gordana Drenkoska.
The case took a new turn in the summer: on July 15, 2026, the prosecution announced that other suspects had been identified and that another married couple was being sought and detained on suspicion in the death of family doctor Trpovski. Drenkoska says she learned that information from media reports and was stunned.
The prosecution has defended its handling by saying it had no legal obligation to inform Drenkoska and her husband earlier. Drenkoska, who lost her partner during the long wait for answers, continues to demand accountability and explanations for the period her family was publicly suspected.
Photo: press material from the event
