Eight tons of drugs: Macedonian court ruling reveals details of drug trafficking to Serbia

A major drug smuggling ring that transported over eight tons of marijuana from North Macedonia to Serbia has been dismantled, with 13 suspects arrested. Both Serbian and Macedonian judicial bodies have been involved in the case, which saw key organizers admit their guilt through plea agreements.

The operation, detailed in court documents, involved five separate shipments of marijuana. According to the agreements and confessions, the total quantity smuggled was 8 tons and 40 kilograms. The exact origin of all the cannabis, whether exclusively from Macedonian factories, is not precisely specified.

Logistical details of the smuggling operation have emerged from the plea agreements. The first two transports occurred in August of the previous year, with discrepancies in the recorded weight of the trucks used for transport. Subsequent shipments in September and November showed smaller weight differences, while the final transport on January 13 of this year involved over five tons of marijuana.

The agreements explain how the smuggling was organized, utilizing vehicles, cars, and trucks purchased or borrowed specifically for the operation. One account details how a person identified by initials D.S. requested vehicles with a "green card," and individuals A.R. and S.R. arrived with a BMW. Subsequently, D. entered a truck loaded with narcotics with suspect A.I., crossing into Serbia, while others monitored the transport in the BMW.

Initials D.S. and A.I. reportedly refer to Dragan Stojanov from Kočani, who oversaw all transports, and Aleksandar Ivanovski, who served as the driver for all five smuggling operations. Macedonian drug lords allegedly paid €10,000 for each participation in these shipments. Following their guilty pleas, Stojanov and Ivanovski received prison sentences of three and a half years.

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D.S. requested people by phone to bring him a vehicle with a green card, and soon persons A.R. and S.R. arrived by BMW car with license plates..., D. entered the truck loaded with narcotics with suspect A.I. and entered the Republic of Serbia at 23:57, while the other suspects continued to move through the territory of the Republic of Serbia by BMW car, monitoring and securing the transport of narcotics.