Thessaloniki prosecutor recommends extradition of ex-UBK officials to Macedonia
A prosecutor at a Thessaloniki court at Wednesday’s hearing has recommended extradition to Macedonia of the two former secret police officials, Greece’s ANA-MPA news agency reports.
After being interrupted, the trial will resume on Friday with a final decision being issued. The defense team of Goran Grujevski and Nikola Boskovski claims there are no ‘real’ charges.
“When asked why they don’t want to be extradited in FYROM, the two men said they fear for their lives and claimed they will not receive a fair trial. They have denied all charges calling their persecution ‘political’, ANA-MPA says citing sources.
The hearing took place in a closed session at the request of the defense lawyers saying they needed to protect their clients. The two men, who were arrested in Thessaloniki in October, have also applied for asylum in Greece.
Extradition requests in Greece are deliberated usually by a three-member council at a public hearing unless it is specifically requested that the hearing is held behind closed doors.
In the event of a ruling on extraditing the former UBK employees, Grujovski and Boskovski have the right to appeal the decision at the Supreme Court in Athens.
In addition to the extradition case, both Grujevski and Boskovski are the subject of two separate court proceedings. The two former secret police officials will be tried for possession of fake passports. The trial is scheduled on 17 May 2018.
A separate hearing is set to take place after they submitted applications seeking asylum in Greece