The leader of a small far-right party in North Macedonia wanted as part of an investigation into a double murder, including that of a 14-year-old girl, was arrested Tuesday night in Turkey, the Balkan country's minister said.
Ljupco Palevski, against whom an international arrest warrant was issued at the initiative of Skopje, is alleged to be the moral perpetrator and perpetrator of the murders of a fourteen-year-old and a seventy-four-year-old from the city of Veles (central), whose bodies were found on Sunday.
According to the police, Mr. Palevski was arrested in the Turkish city of Balikesir (Paleokastro, northwest), where he had arrived via Serbia and Bulgaria.
"Colleagues from Turkey have informed me that the mastermind, organiser, key coordinator and perpetrator (of the double murder) has been arrested on their territory," North Macedonia's Interior Minister Oliver Spasovski said. A press conference is pending on the development of the case.
According to the police, four people are involved in the murders, including the teenager's father.
The controversial Mr Palevski, a politician who has repeatedly run afoul of the authorities, is a former businessman and media owner who had been involved in pro-Russian activities in recent years.
Based on the investigation, the 74-year-old owed money to one of the suspects and was a collateral victim, as his car was used to kidnap the teenager on November 27. The car was later found charred near the location where the girl's body was found.
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