Police dismantle 21-member organized group for drug trafficking and money laundering
Coordinated raids in Prilep, Skopje and Struga led to 20 detentions and seizures including drugs, cash and weapons.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs carried out a coordinated operation following months of criminal investigation, dismantling a 21-member organized criminal group involved in illegal drug trafficking and related economic crimes, police said.
Searches, detentions and seized items
Acting on court orders, officers searched 31 people at 36 locations — 33 in Prilep, two in Skopje and one in Struga. Twenty people were taken into custody. Authorities found and confiscated herbal material, white powdery substances, chunky material, a gas pistol, ammunition of various calibers, a substantial amount of foreign-currency and denar cash, passenger cars, motorcycles, mobile phones, a metal crusher, a metal detector, scales and other items.
The operation was led by the Department for Suppression of Organized and Serious Crime in cooperation with the Financial Intelligence Unit and the Department for Special Police Operations, under the supervision of a prosecutor from the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office for Prosecution of Organized Crime and Corruption.
After the searches and on the basis of already collected material evidence, the Unit for Violent Crime, Blood Offences and Unlawful Trade in Weapons and Dangerous Substances submitted criminal charges against 21 persons to the prosecutor’s office. Twenty of the suspects are from Prilep and one is from Skopje: N.V. (38), M.I. (35), B.I. (62) and M.S. (29) were charged with "unauthorized production and distribution of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors" (Article 215, para.3) and "money laundering and other proceeds from criminal offence" (Article 273); the remaining suspects from Prilep — M.S. (27), D.K. (40), V.S. (40), A.D. (29), D.J. (35), H.S. (28), D.S. (19), F.Z. (22), A.Z. (25), V.N. (22), A.M. (23), A.I. (20), V.A. (24), D.Ǵ. (43), R.S. (45) and J.N. (44) — were charged with "unauthorized production and distribution of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors" (Article 215, para.3). The person from Skopje, T.D. (75), was charged with "money laundering and other proceeds from criminal offence" (Article 273).
Investigators say that between February 2026 and October 2026 N.V. and M.S. established the organized group to trade in drugs and weapons and to carry out economic crimes. According to the investigation, N.V. purchased cocaine and marijuana from unidentified persons originating from Albania, Struga and Debar, stored the drugs at secure locations in Skopje and Prilep, and organised a network of resellers — D.K., A.D., D.J., V.S., D.S., A.Z., A.M., A.I., V.A., R.S. and J.N. — who sold to buyers in Prilep, Bitola, Kavadarci, Negotino, Veles and Skopje. Sales prices ranged from 500 to 800 denars per gram of marijuana and 4,000 to 6,000 denars per gram of cocaine; proceeds were handed to N.V., who rewarded resellers with a share used later to buy movable and immovable property.
The inquiry also indicates that M.S. bought drugs from unidentified persons from Debar and Gostivar, held them at secure locations in Prilep and organised resellers — D.K., F.Z., H.S., V.N., A.M. and A.I. — who sold to buyers in Prilep, Bitola, Kavadarci, Negotino and Veles at the same price ranges; proceeds were delivered to M.S., who paid resellers a share.
Police further allege that between 2025 and 2026 N.V., M.I., B.I. (currently detained in France on a charge under Article 215 of the Criminal Code), M.S. and T.D. placed criminal proceeds into the legal financial system to hide their origin and circulation, introducing a total of 4,990,270 denars and 64,670 euros into legitimate transactions after receiving and putting the funds into circulation.
Photo: press material from the event
