There were a number of contradictions in the testimony of the witnesses questioned in the case against Iva Mihaylova in Kočani, in North Macedonia. We told her story exclusively on BNT. Iva was injured in a road traffic accident between Kocani and Stip and, since October, has been unable to leave her home town to receive medical treatment.
Nine witnesses were summoned to today's hearing, July 29. Two failed to appear, while the questioning of one witness was postponed until tomorrow morning, as it is expected to last at least several hours.
Today, the driver of the vehicle that collided with Iva Mihaylova's car gave evidence. He said he remembered travelling from Skopje to Berovo but could not recall whom he was going to meet or for what purpose. He remembered driving behind a van without registration plates and therefore assumed that the van had been stopped for inspection by police before the turn-off into Kocani. However, he said he could not remember exactly how the collision occurred.
The front-seat passenger also said he had seen nothing because he had turned to his right seconds before the impact and therefore did not witness how the collision happened. The passenger in the rear seat was speaking on his mobile phone at the time and likewise said he had not seen how the collision occurred.
A driver travelling behind that vehicle told the court that he had also turned to his right to look at the vehicle being inspected and, as a result, did not see how the collision happened.
Of the police officers carrying out vehicle checks, one officer said she had her back to the scene of the collision and only heard the impact. The other officer said that he and his colleague had been watching traffic travelling from Stip towards Kocani and had also not witnessed the collision.
In fact, it turned out today that not a single witness claims that Iva Mihaylova drove into oncoming traffic, thereby causing the serious accident.
Her lawyers today submitted to the court an expert medical opinion prepared by five doctors, stating that her health condition is deteriorating and that she needs treatment. According to the opinion, the treatment she needs is not available in the Republic of North Macedonia. On that basis, they once again asked the court to allow Iva to travel to Bulgaria for medical treatment.
The trial continues tomorrow. It is possible that as early as tomorrow, or in the days that follow, the court will rule on whether Iva Mihaylova will finally be permitted to travel to Bulgaria for treatment.
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Iva Mihaylova from Kočani is 23 years old and holds both Bulgarian and North Macedonia citizenship. For the past eight months, she has been prohibited from leaving her hometown. Following a road traffic collision in October last year, the authorities in Skopje confiscated her identity documents, including those issued by Bulgaria.
At the beginning of October, Iva was travelling towards Štip. As she passed her hometown of Kočani, she noticed a police vehicle stopped in the opposite lane at a junction leading into the town.
"At that moment, they stopped one car for an inspection, and the second car coming from the opposite direction, trying somehow to get past them, entered my lane and hit me. My car then crashed into the crash barrier again, while the other vehicle spun around and came to a stop across both lanes," Iva Mihayolova said on 7 June.
The car Iva was driving was crushed beyond recognition, leaving her trapped inside the vehicle.
Iva Mihaylova: “He hit me with the front of his vehicle. As a result, the front of his car was damaged, while the left side of mine was damaged because he struck me from the left. The police officer who was there came over, helped me and gave me some water.”
All those injured were taken to the emergency department in Kočani. Iva says doctors initially told her there was almost nothing wrong with her.
Iva Mihaylova: "But I felt that I wasn't well at all. Literally it hurt everywhere, I was experiencing pain all over my body. So, at my own request, I was taken to Acibadem Hospital in Skopje."
Doctors at the hospital decided she needed to remain there for treatment. Just a few hours later, three police officers took up position outside her hospital room, she recalls.
Iva Mihaylova: "The police came and took both my Bulgarian and Macedonian passports."
Iva says she has since been banned from leaving Kočani. She also says the injuries she sustained have led to serious complications.
Iva Mihaylova: "I have fractured vertebrae — L5 is broken and L4 is cracked."
Q: "You actually have problems moving your left leg?"
Iva Mihaylova: "Yes. It becomes paralysed from time to time. It's a form of partial paraplegia. The sooner treatment begins, the better. The procedure I need in order to recover fully is available in Bulgaria, Turkey and Israel. In North Macedonia, they haven't even heard of such a procedure."
She submitted a request to undergo treatment in Bulgaria. She says it included a neurologist's recommendation and a medical expert opinion.
Iva Mihaylova: "They refused my request. We applied again at the end of March after a neurologist recommended the surgical procedure, which can be performed in the countries I mentioned. They refused again."
We sent questions regarding the investigation to the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of North Macedonia. No response has been received so far.
Iva says that two weeks earlier she had received a proposal for indictment and notification that her trial would begin on 6 July.
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