Who is Nicole Gruevski? As children in Libya, then boxers, and finally politician in prison

Today a Criminal Court in Macedonia found former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski guilty of the Tancu case, AlsatM reported, Periscopi broadcast.

He was sentenced to two years in prison.

But who really is Nikola Gruevski?

He was born in Skopje in 1970, and grew up in a family that was neither privileged nor poor. His father worked at a furniture company while his mother was a nurse. When his parents were divorced, he had stayed with his mother. After she had to go to Libya to work, like thousands of other Yugoslav citizens, among other Albanians, Nicolaus had gone with her.

After returning to Yugoslavia, he had completed his elementary and middle school in Skopje to graduate later for economics in 1994, during which time he had also participated in amateur theatre and boxing.

Gruevski has divorced his first wife, and married again in May 2007 to Borkica Gruevska, with whom he has two daughters.

Nicholas's grandfather had fought in the Greco-litian war and there he lost his life. His name is mentioned in the memorial of the war in Aclada [formerly Krushorad], among other names that had been killed during World War II. Gruevski's last name had been Grouios, but after the departure of his grandparents to Yugoslav Macedonia, they had changed it in order to obtain Yugoslav citizenship by assimilated, writes Periscope.

Gruevski had been finance minister from 1999 to 2002. He had sold Macedonian Telekom and implemented numerous financial reforms.

In 2003, he had become leader of the ruling nationalist party V. MRO-DPMNE. At the time, Gruevski had been the pro-European leader, and had been elected after Ljubco Georgievski left office.

From 2006 until 2016, writes Periscope, he had served as Macedonia's prime minister. V MRO-DPMNE had won the July 2006 elections, and on 25 August Gruevski had formed the new government.

The coalition led by him had won all the later elections, including the last one in which after the post-election coalition he had lost the prime minister's position.

In May 2015, major protests took place in Skopje against Gruevski and his government. The protests brought grave accusations against him, whose spokesman had been Zoran Zaev, the opposition leader. On May 5th, there had been a protest in which violence between activists and police broke out, with injuries on both sides. Many ministers, including Interior Minister Jankulovska, had resigned during the time of the protests. But Gruevski had refused to resign.

In January 2016, however, Prime Minister Gruevski had resigned but had named Emil Dimitriev, who had served until holding new elections, instead.

In January 2017, Macedonia's Special Prosecutor's Office began investigating “Tancu”, in which two individuals were accused of using official position and authority between February and October 2012 to procure a Mercedes-Benz 600 worth 600 euros to meet “Gruevski's prime minister. /Periscopi