Former Transportation Minister Mile Janakieski was carried off to the Idrizovo prison today, to begin serving his sentence of three and a half years for violating the election laws. Janakieski, who has spent over four years in house arrest, asked that this time is counted against the sentence, but a decision on this request is still pending.

During a previous arrest, in 2019, Janakieski and another former minister, Spiro Ristovski, were brutally attacked by a group of sentenced Albanian terrorists and suffered injuries. In light of this attack, and the campaign of persecution against him by the Government, Janakieski said that he does not feel safe going to prison.

Considering what happened before, no, I don’t feel safe. But I will endure. What’s important is my family, Janakieski told the press as he was entering the waiting police vehicle.

Janakieski faced a dozen politically motivated charges initiated by now disgraced Special Prosecutor Katica Janeva.