During his press conference to discuss to charges in the Boki 13 scandal, chief public prosecutor Ljubomir Joveski attacked a judge who he said should dismissed from office, after she found the journalist Dragan Pavlovik – Latas not guilty in a politically driven case against him.

Latas, one of the best known Macedonian journalists and strong critic of the Zoran Zaev Government, was charged by the Special Prosecutor’s Office over several vacation homes he built with his brothers outside of Skopje, allegedly without a permit. Special Prosecutor Katica Janeva demanded a long prison sentence for Latas, and the charged managed to sideline him from the well watched Sitel TV station, but were eventually thrown out by the court.

The Boki 13 scandal appears to strike directly at Special Prosecutor Janeva, but as he was explaining its facts, chief prosecutor Joveski couldn’t resist appropriating one of the best known traits of Janeva – threatening judges who don’t vote his way.

I support the proposal for vetting of judges and prosecutors. The judiciary overall should be submitted to this kind of checks. We saw what happened with the latest verdict over the unlawful construction case. We saw how the judge interpreted the law and I believe that such judges don’t belong in the judiciary. The Judicial Council should probably investigate them, Joveski said, declaring to the public that clearly he is the new Katica Janeva, after apparently striking a death blow to her office.