Criminal Court seizes Bilal Kara’s passport and bars him from leaving North Macedonia
Criminal Court ordered passport seizure and a travel ban for the European Eye Hospital board chair amid a money‑laundering investigation.
Published: October 30, 2026, 22:24 — The Criminal Court has ordered that the passport of Bilal Kara, chairman of the board of the European Eye Hospital, be confiscated as a precautionary measure while he is under investigation for money laundering.
Court measures and the scope of the probe
Alongside the passport seizure, the court prohibited Kara from leaving North Macedonia and imposed an obligation to report regularly to the court. The measures were taken as part of a criminal inquiry into alleged misuse of funds that the hospital received from the Fund.
Investigators say the probe covers suspected irregularities in billing and payments: authorities are examining claims that services paid for through the Fund were additionally charged to patients. The inquiry includes a total of ten other persons under investigation.
Among those reportedly included in the investigation is former director of the Fund, Den Donchev, as well as former and current Fund employees and several executives at the private eye hospital. Prosecutors and investigators have not yet released further procedural details.
The court's restrictions on Kara are precautionary and aim to prevent flight and interference with the ongoing investigation. No final determinations of guilt have been made; the measures will remain in force while investigators continue gathering evidence.
Photo: press material from the event
