Ten police officers from the Rapid Deployment Unit are under investigation for allegedly abusing their positions to gain illegal financial benefits. The Department for Internal Control, Criminal Investigations and Professional Standards at the Ministry of Internal Affairs filed a criminal complaint against the officers with the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office for Prosecution of Organized Crime and Corruption.

The officers, identified as K.G., G.D., N.S., I.G., D.D., D.D., N.M., S.S., Z.T., and D.T., are suspected of exploiting travel expense reimbursements. Despite being registered as residents outside of Skopje, they allegedly received payments from the Ministry of Internal Affairs for travel expenses on days they did not commute to their workplace in Skopje.

This abuse of official position and authority, punishable under Article 353 of the Criminal Code, reportedly resulted in damages of 1,098,120 denars to the Ministry of Internal Affairs budget between December 1, 2023, and September 17, 2024.

In addition to the criminal complaint, the Department for Internal Control, Criminal Investigations and Professional Standards will propose disciplinary proceedings against the implicated police officers.