Trial resumes for accused serial killer Trajko Bojkovski; closing arguments expected

The trial of accused serial killer Trajko Bojkovski resumed on Tuesday with closing arguments expected from the state prosecutor and the defendant's lawyer, and with the possibility that the court will set a date for the verdict.

Key points from the courtroom

At the previous hearing Bojkovski — identified in court as the man from Staro Nagorichane — told the bench that he had killed "three grandmothers," indicating the number with his fingers. He denied the prosecutor's accusation that he killed four women, while admitting that he had attempted to kill two others. During questioning he testified inconsistently, at one point denying that he had killed Stanche, who is listed first among the alleged victims.

Prosecutor Ljubomir Lape asked the court to take into account the transcript of an earlier interrogation in which Bojkovski gave detailed descriptions of the killings and specified dates. In that earlier statement the defendant said he stalked the women, entered their homes—usually while they were asleep—strangled them, raped them after they were dead and, in some instances, claimed to have consumed parts of their bodies. Bojkovski said these acts were driven by necrophilic impulses.

The indictment says the murders and attempted murders occurred between January 2025 and February 2026. Prosecutors note that none of the bodies were examined by autopsy before burial, and that no official had established the deaths as homicides and sexual assaults prior to burial. Because of those omissions, an investigation is under way into two medical death investigators from Kumanovo; the inquiry does not currently extend to the police officers who conducted the scene inspections.

In court Bojkovski admitted three of the four killings and said he committed the crimes for money. Today the court is scheduled to hear final submissions from the state prosecutor and from the defendant's lawyer; the defendant may also make a final statement if he chooses. A hearing for delivering the verdict is expected to be scheduled.

The proceedings remain closely watched because of the nature of the allegations and the procedural questions raised about how the deaths were handled by authorities.

Photo: press material from the event