The plan to kidnap and murder 14-year-old Vanja Gjorchevska was originally set to take place three days before the actual crime, but it failed due to the defendants being delayed by traffic and missing the opportunity to capture her outside her residence. This detail emerged from the charges presented by prosecutor Jaklina Krstevska-Josifovska during the trial of Ljupcho Palevski, Velibor Manev, Bore Videvski, Vlatko Keshishev, and Alexander Gjorchevsky, who are accused of murdering Vanja Gjorchevska and 74-year-old Panche Zhezhovski.

According to the prosecution, the kidnapping of Vanja was intended to force a member of her family to pay a ransom. Although some of the defendants had previously confessed to the crime and even aided authorities in locating the victims’ bodies, they all pleaded not guilty in court.

Prosecutor Krstevska-Josifovska provided further details, explaining that after the initial failed attempt, the defendants succeeded on Monday, having planned their movements to avoid being captured by surveillance cameras. Around 9:30 a.m., Ljupcho, Velibor, Bore, and Vlatko brutally murdered Vanja, inflicting severe mental and physical suffering by restraining her before killing her.

One of the defense lawyers argued that his client, Alexander Gjorchevsky, was innocent and that there was no evidence linking him to the crime. He further claimed that Alexander had no financial motive, as the apartment in question had already been gifted to Vanja and her sister Minya by Alexander’s father. The lawyer also alleged that Alexander was tortured into confessing.

As for the murder of Panche Zhezhovski, the indictment revealed that he was abducted from his home and taken to the Rudnik area, where he was killed. A grave had been dug for him in advance.

The indictment also indicated that the defendants showed no remorse and believed they would not be caught. When Palevski suspected he might be discovered, he fled the country, traveling to Serbia and then Turkey. In court, Palevski claimed that the then-Minister of Internal Affairs, Oliver Spasovski, had confirmed that he was not a suspect when he left the country, and that his trip to Turkey was pre-planned for medical reasons, not an attempt to escape, as he needed an MRI for a severe back condition.

The prosecution requested the trial be closed to the public due to concerns from Vanja’s mother, Zorica, who submitted psychiatric reports showing her post-traumatic stress disorder had worsened due to media coverage of the case. However, the court denied this request, allowing the public to continue following the proceedings. Zorica Gjorchevska is scheduled to testify at the next hearing on October 7.