Leading ethnic Albanian official in the ruling SDSM party Muhamed Zekiri is facing organized crime charges. Prosecutors today informed that they are investigating two Croatian officials and an employee of the Government office, which is privately identified as Zekiri.

The charges are that between April 2021 and January 2022, the Government official approved a consulting contract worth almost a million EUR without a proper bidding procedure. The two Croatian citizens helped him in the process. prosecutors are requesting that the three are detained.

Zekiri is a former journalist who became very close to Zoran Zaev during the Colored Revolution and eventually made a move to the SDSM party, where he was elevated to Vice President. Zaev was the best man at his wedding and named him Secretary General of the Government after he removed Dragi Raskovski (who is also facing corruption charges). But Zekiri’s push to expand the SDSM voter base toward ethnic Albanians earned him many enemies in the powerful DUI party.