Kerim Bushi, the notorious son of former Deputy Interior Minister Nazim Bushi, was questioned today about his alleged cooperation with the Baron-Belanoca drug gang.

The Albanian mafia gang, that operates in Skopje’s eastern districts, was raided 10 days ago. The raid had to be moved forward by several days, after it became clear that the gang has received information from within the police about what is coming their way.

A person was detained and questioned in a police station about the crime of disclosing an official secret. His phone was seized. He was released on orders from the state prosecutors, the Interior Ministry informed.

Chief state prosecutor Ljupco Kocevski said that the raid plan was not leaked from his team, indicating that the gang was receiving information from the police. Of the 18 gang members that were sought for murder and extortion, only four were arrested, one turned himself in, and five were charged while already in prison. Six fled before the raid and two have been absent from the country for a longer period of time.

Nazim Bushi was a powerful figure in the Ministry, and is a top DUI party official. His son was long suspected of ties to the Albanian underworld, but was seen as untouchable under the DUI – SDSM regime.