Macedonia TV Boss Remains In Custody

"For the time being, no one has sought the freezing of property or the blocking of accounts," Ramkovski’s attorney, Miroslav Vuic, told media over the weekend.

The court in Skopje on Friday ordered 30 days of detention for Ramkovski and 13 associates. The police are searching for several others.

Unofficially, media speculate that the state prosecutor did not demand the freezing of his assets so as not to create a bad image by closing down his TV station, the most popular in the country.

Police seized the media owner and his associates the previous night and charged them with money laundering, tax evasion and other serious financial crimes worth more than 17 million euro.

"They are suspected of conducting crimes over the period of 2006-2010," police said on Saturday.

Once seen as close ally of the VMRO DPMNE party of Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, Ramkovski recently accused the ruling party of seeking excuses to close down A1 and put him in jail after his media outlets started criticizing the government.

A month ago, on November 25, police accompanied financial inspectors into the building of A1 in search of evidence of financial crimes. The TV station and Ramkovski accused the police of intimidating his staff.

Gruevski has not commented on Ramkovski’s arrest. The main opposition Social Democrats have accused the government of ordering the selective arrests of people that are not government supporters.

The Social Democrat leader, Branko Crvenkovski, asked why Ramkovski was being apprehended now and not years ago, when he backed the ruling politicians.

The Macedonian Association of Journalists has called for Ramkovski’s media to stay open and for journalists to be allowed to continue to work freely.

As well as owning A1 TV station, Ramkovski is also linked to the daily newspapers Vreme, Spic and Koha e Re.