Gjolo Ristov trial continued without two experts after illness-related absences

Two court-appointed experts failed to appear at the Criminal Court hearing in the trial of appellate judge Gjolo Ristov, prolonging a procedural pause in the case in which prosecutors say 350,000 euros were found hidden inside a wall of the judge’s family home in Negotino in January.

Experts absent, defence witnesses withdrawn

One of the experts, Atanas Kozarev, who was assigned to examine DNA found on the banknotes recovered from the wall, was reported ill and did not attend. Ristov’s lawyer from Kavadarci was notified of Kozarev’s illness, but she in turn became ill and also did not come to court; she was supposed to question the expert.

The other expert also did not attend and told the defence he had not finished his report. Defence attorney Zvonko Davidović said the expert’s work would be completed and submitted to the court by Thursday.

Earlier in the proceedings, an expert engaged by the defence, Emilio Friščić, presented his findings and argued that the handwriting on the banknotes found in the wall was not his client’s. The notes were tested and DNA matching the judge was reportedly detected; Ristov denies the notes belong to him.

Another expert, Antonio Gjorgiev, was also late with his analysis and did not appear at the hearing.

Presiding judge Biljana Kocevska criticized the absence. "It is incomprehensible how at all previous hearings both technical advisors Friščić and Gjorgiev attended, and precisely today, when they were supposed to be present, they are not here. This is, at the very least, irresponsible. The trial will not fail, it must not fail, so present the material evidence instead of the presentation of expert reports and hearing the experts," she said at the Criminal Court today.

Afterward the judge noted that the defence had withdrawn its witnesses: convicted doctors for corruption Marjan Stoevski and Edin Sheapi, and Ljupcho Pecov-Gjavolot, whom Ristov had previously prosecuted at the Appellate Court Skopje. On the day’s docket the defence proposed only a few material exhibits.

Photo: SDK.MK)