Hearing postponed in case against 13 police officers linked to Puls nightclub fire

The hearing in the case against 13 police officers accused in connection with the deadly fire at the Puls nightclub in Kochani was postponed today at the Basic Criminal Court in Skopje due to absent witnesses.

Next hearing set for September 21; court plans to use police to deliver summonses

The court said several witness summonses were returned as improperly delivered or marked "did not request", and for others there is no proof of receipt. Prosecutor Spasenka Andonova told the courtroom that one witness had phoned to say he received the summons but would attend only if transport to Skopje were provided.

Presiding Judge Fanka Janchuleva Mihailovska announced that for the next hearing the court will have summonses delivered through a police station. She warned that if witnesses again fail to appear, the court will apply legal measures including fines and compulsory attendance. The next hearing is scheduled for September 21.

After the session, Dragi Stojanov, father of Panche Stojanov, expressed frustration with the delay and urged the court to use all available means to secure testimony.

"We recommend that the court, even if the witnesses are not brought, duly summon them, call them and contact them in order to determine the reason. We are losing time, nerves and we have great stress when we come here. I call on the court to duly summon them and to use all mechanisms necessary — if needed, to bring them with police escort. Maybe some of the witnesses are under threat or are not allowed to come. Let them state their position. We recommend that the witnesses come and tell the truth, not be afraid and not give in to threats and pressure," he said.

Stojanov also said families face pressure from lawyers over what they say about them.

"The lawyers threaten to press criminal charges against us for what we say about them. We will recommend that before they file a criminal complaint they put a finger to their head and think, swap places with us for 10 minutes and consider how it would be if his child was the one. If he thinks that by filing criminal charges he will get money from me, where did he get those expectations from?" he added.

The trial concerns the March 16 fire at the Puls nightclub in Kochani that killed 63 people and injured more than 200. The indictment alleges that the police officers on duty were also engaged inside the club and did not halt the event or prevent the use of pyrotechnics.

Photo: press material from the event