Artan Grubi Could Be Released from House Arrest in 17 Days if the Prosecution Does Not Charge Him

The investigation into former DUI deputy prime minister Artan Grubi is entering its final days. The six-month deadline expires on August 22, and if an indictment is not filed by then, his house arrest measure will also be lifted.

The prosecutor at the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office in Skopje has 17 days left to conclude the investigation. Grubi, who spent 14 months on the run, was held in pretrial detention for only half a day after surrendering before the measure was immediately replaced with house arrest. If no charges are filed, he will remain free.

The Criminal Court told Sakamdakazam.mk that, in the absence of an indictment, house arrest must be lifted, while the Basic Criminal Court in Skopje will, ex officio, impose a measure to ensure the suspect’s presence. According to the court, this usually means confiscating the travel document.

Grubi surrendered on February 23, 2026, at the Blace border crossing. Before that, he had been staying in Kosovo, where people can enter and leave across the border using an identity card, without needing a passport.

The former deputy prime minister is suspected of embezzling 8.2 million euros from the State Lottery. After several hours in pretrial detention, he said he did not feel safe in Shutka. Later, following a proposal for house arrest, the prosecutor, operatives of the National Security Agency (NSA), officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), and the preliminary-procedure judge decided to take him out of prison.

On November 24, 2025, former state prosecutor Ljupço Kocevski said that the evidence against Grubi had been secured and that only his extradition from Kosovo remained. However, there are still no clear explanations regarding the matter. The prosecution also announced yesterday that it had no new information about the investigation that could be made public.

In the same case, besides Grubi, Prparim Bajrami is also listed as a suspect. He is the chairman of the Management Board and director general of the State Lottery. Bajrami is also on the run.

Four other people are under investigation as chairmen and members of commissions involved in two separate public calls. The suspicion against them concerns the abuse of powers and special duties, as they conducted procedures to transfer the right to organize electronic and online games of chance, even though they knew that such an action should not have been carried out in those circumstances.