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Perparim Bajrami surrenders after 21-month flight in State Lottery case
Perparim Bajrami, the former director of the State Lottery of North Macedonia, surrendered at the Blace border crossing on the morning of September 9, 2026, after being a fugitive for approximately 21 months. Bajrami, who was 33 at the time of his surrender, had been the subject of an international arrest warrant issued in December 2024.
Bajrami is the primary accused in a corruption case involving the State Lottery, alongside former First Deputy Prime Minister Artan Grubi. The prosecution alleges that between 2023 and 2024, the defendants abused their official positions and authority regarding the procurement of video lottery terminals and the introduction of electronic gambling games. These actions reportedly caused damages to the State Lottery estimated at approximately 596 million denars (over 8.25 million euros).
Following his surrender at 05:35, Bajrami was detained and transferred to the Skopje prison (Shutka). Due to his arrival, the Basic Criminal Court in Skopje has postponed scheduled hearings for September 11 and 16, rescheduling the trial to begin on September 18 to allow Bajrami time to review the indictment and evidence.
Entities
Artan Grubi · Blace Border Crossing · Ministry of Internal Affairs · Pançe Toshkovski · Perparim Bajrami · Skopje · State Lottery · State Lottery of North Macedonia
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.
- [● 17 SOURCES] Perparim Bajrami is accused of abuse of official position and authority. racin.mk · libertas.mk · off.net.mk · expres.mk · lajmpress.org · +11 more
- [● 17 SOURCES] Perparim Bajrami surrendered himself to the authorities after being a fugitive for over a year. racin.mk · libertas.mk · off.net.mk · expres.mk · lajmpress.org · +11 more
- [● 17 SOURCES] An international arrest warrant had been issued for Bajrami. racin.mk · libertas.mk · off.net.mk · expres.mk · lajmpress.org · +10 more
- [● 17 SOURCES] The investigation involves the procurement of gambling terminals. off.net.mk · expres.mk · lajmpress.org · racin.mk · vesti.alfa.mk · +10 more
- [● 4 SOURCES] The accused caused damages to the State Lottery amounting to 596,125,511 denars. libertas.mk · vesti.alfa.mk · zhurnal.mk
- [● 12 SOURCES] Former Deputy Prime Minister Artan Grubi was placed under house arrest following his arrest in February. libertas.mk · off.net.mk · expres.mk · lajmpress.org · racin.mk · +5 more
- [● 12 SOURCES] Perparim Bajrami surrendered at the Blace border crossing at 05:35. tetova1.mk · expres.mk · lajmpress.org · pari.com.mk · racin.mk · +7 more
- [● 2 SOURCES] The court postponed hearings for the State Lottery case to September 18. portalb.mk