Balkan casino and top-level service

Casino in North Macedonia falsified negative COVID-19 tests to attract players from Greece.

This was revealed by journalist of the Greek TV channel Open TV Christos Nikolaidis, who conducted an investigation in the Macedonian town of Dojran, located near the border with Greece. Nikolaidis reported an outbreak of COVID-19 cases in small settlements on the Greek side of the border with North Macedonia. Locals linked these cases to people who traveled to play at casinos in the neighboring country.

Media reported that at the end of 2021 about 900 Greek citizens crossed the border daily to play in Macedonian casinos. Some users claimed that the gambling operator provided free negative COVID-19 tests.

The journalist filmed the process of obtaining such a test at one of the town’s casinos with a hidden camera.

“We went to the biggest casino in the area, which is open 24/7. Unfortunately, COVID-19 measures were not followed, and none of us were checked for tests or vaccinations,” Nikolaidis said.

According to him, after presenting documents they were allowed to play, and after a while they were given “not only a negative result of a fake rapid test, but also a PLF form, which is required for returning to Greece.”

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of North Macedonia announced an investigation into the Greek journalist’s report, after which searches were conducted at the Dojran casino and three employees were charged.

Under Macedonian law, forging COVID-19 certificates is a criminal offense punishable by up to three years in prison.