Perparim Bajrami sought for extradition from Kosovo, Albania and the UAE — returns after 21 months
Ministry of Justice says police alerts led to extradition requests to Kosovo (Dec 20, 2024), Albania (Mar 12, 2025) and the UAE (Jan 26, 2026).
Perparim Bajrami was the subject of formal extradition requests sent by North Macedonia to three countries — Kosovo, Albania and the United Arab Emirates — authorities say, after he disappeared for 21 months and returned on foot this morning.
The Ministry of Justice provided a timeline showing that police alerts prompted each request. According to the ministry, the Ministry of Interior (MVR-SMPS) first informed prosecutors that "according to possible information we possess, the person Perparim Bajrami is in Kosovo," and an extradition request for Kosovo was filed on 20 December 2024.
Chronology of the requests
The ministry's reply lists subsequent notifications and requests: on 27 February 2025 the interior ministry reported Bajrami was in Albania and an extradition request for Albania was lodged on 12 March 2025; later, on 30 October 2025 police notified they had "possible information that the person is staying in the United Arab Emirates," and an extradition request for the UAE was submitted on 26 January 2026.
Ministry officials stressed that "all notifications about where the persons are located were received from MVR-SMPS and each notification was acted upon." The ministry also said that for every notification it requested and received case files from the Skopje prosecutor's office through the State Public Prosecutor's Office (JORSM) and immediately prepared and sent extradition requests for Bajrami to the respective countries.
The same pattern of three extradition requests was applied to Artan Grubi, who is accused in the same case as Bajrami. Grubi returned to North Macedonia on foot via Kosovo and appeared at the Blace border crossing in mid-February 2026.
Officials say Bajrami crossed the border on foot as well; there have long been indications he planned to surrender from Kosovo, where he had been hiding from the arrest warrant. Authorities add that additional investigations into his case are ongoing.
Photo: press material from the event
