All those convicted over the Laskarca tragedy released, warrant for Remzi Miftari expected to be revoked

All those accused in connection with the Laskarca tragedy, in which 16 people lost their lives and 38 others were injured, are now out of prison. Qirko Mihajlloski, a preliminary proceedings judge at the Gostivar Court, confirmed to Alsat that the release came after the Supreme Court overturned the Appeals Court’s decision to increase the sentences.

According to Mihajlloski, the implementation of the first-instance ruling, which provides for lower sentences for the accused, cannot be considered final. For this reason, the next decision from the Appeals Court must be awaited.

All precautionary measures imposed on the accused to ensure their presence during the proceedings have also been lifted. These measures had included an obligation to report to court, while some of them had provided guarantees that they would not flee.

Meanwhile, Remzi Miftari remains at large. Following the Supreme Court’s decision, the Gostivar Court is expected to ask the Ministry of Internal Affairs to revoke both the domestic and international arrest warrants. Miftari had postponed serving his sentence on the grounds that he would undergo surgery for a “hernia,” but after completing his treatment, he did not report to prison and fled.

Durmish Beluli had also postponed the start of his six-month sentence for the same diagnosis. He had undergone two operations for a “hernia.”

Relatives of the Laskarca victims organized a protest and said they had seen Beluli moving around the city. “I was coming here now. For this press conference at 11 o’clock, Durmish Beluli was driving here on ‘Braqa Xhinovski’ Boulevard. Some time ago, the first accused was at a wedding in a café,” said family member Bllagojçe Trpeski on September 15, 2025.

Unlike Miftari, Beluli reported in January to begin serving his sentence. However, following the Supreme Court’s decision and after spending nine months in prison, he has been released again.

After his release, Beluli published a message on social media stating that “silence is no longer a virtue.” He stressed that court decisions must be enforced, but that justice must be impartial and based solely on evidence, without influence from political or media pressure. “I am firmly convinced that no pressure can keep innocence and freedom imprisoned.”

The Supreme Court’s decision has prompted widespread reaction, as it overturned the harsher sentences imposed by the Appeals Court and reinstated the first-instance sentences. The case will now be reviewed again by the Appeals Court.

As a result of this decision, the 10-year sentence imposed on Durmish Beluli, the owner of the “Durmo Tours” company, has been lifted and his four-year prison sentence reinstated. The 10-year sentence imposed on transport manager Remzi Miftari has been overturned and his six-year sentence reinstated. Technical inspection chief Igor Gjorgjievski and technical inspector Goran Dukovski will serve five-year prison sentences instead of seven years. The five-year sentence for technical inspector Jane Babarovski remains in force, while driver Manoil Trifunovski continues to have the harshest sentence, 14 years in prison.

The court proceedings have been accompanied over the years by accusations of delays, in a situation associated with the phrase “justice delayed is justice denied.” A full seven years have passed since the incident, yet no final conclusion has been reached. /Alsat/