In 2017, the former prime minister of North Macedonia Nikola Gruevski, former interior minister Gordana Jankulovska and interior ministry official Gjoko Popovski were indicted for orchestrating a rigged public tender to purchase an armoured Mercedes worth nearly €600,000. Although the purchase was officially declared to meet the needs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the tender was ordered by Gruevski for his private use. In 2018, Gruevski was sentenced to two years in prison, but he fled the country and has since evaded justice. Jankulovska received a four-year sentence and served three years before being released on parole in 2023. Popovski was sentenced to four and a half years in prison.

The case, codenamed "Tank", was one of many in a series of corruption investigations launched by the Special Prosecutor’s Office in response to alleged abuses revealed during the 2015 wiretapping scandal. The scandal broke in February 2015 when the opposition Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) party began releasing covertly recorded tapes that implicated officials of the government, led by the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE), in mass illegal surveillance and various forms of state abuse.

In May 2015, newly released audio recordings revealed that then prime minister Gruevski, minister Jankulovska, and a ministry official had orchestrated a rigged tender in 2012 to use public funds for the purchase of the luxurious Mercedes for Gruevski's personal use (see also here). In the aired recordings, Gruevski instructed Jankulovska to expedite the procurement, and Jankulovska reassured him that although the public bidding was electronic, they were ensuring that no bidder other than the one chosen would participate. Gruevski also told her, “Until the local elections, we’ll pretend the vehicle is for MVR [interior ministry] purposes...and I will use it only for destinations where there are no journalists meeting me.” In further conversations with former secret police chief Sašo Mijalkov, Jankulovska disclosed the car's cost—€575,000—and remarked, "It’s a fantasy; I’ve never seen anything like it," adding that they had hidden the vehicle in the prime minister’s garage to keep it out of the public eye.

The wiretapping scandal produced a profound political crisis in North Macedonia, prompting the European Union to broker an inter-party agreement in 2015, which established a special prosecutor to investigate the alleged government abuses.

On 24 January 2017, the Special Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation into the disputed procurement of the Mercedes. The indictment was filed on 29 June 2017 and confirmed on 27 November 2017. Three defendants were charged. Former interior minister Gordana Jankulovska and Gjoko Popovski, the former assistant for general affairs at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, were charged with abuse of official position and authority. The prosecution alleged that between February and October 2012, at the request of former prime minister Gruevski, the defendants unlawfully issued a public tender for the purchase of a vehicle for the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Gruevski was also charged with accepting a reward for illegal influence.

According to the indictment, Gruevski instructed Jankulovska to initiate a public procurement process for the purchase of a Mercedes-Benz S 600 Guard in a manner that would benefit the company Mak Autostar. To comply, Jankulovska directed her assistant, Popovski, to issue a public tender tailored to favour the selected company and obtain the desired vehicle. Popovski published the tender in April 2012, violating the Law on Public Procurement. The tender included multiple technical specifications that pointed to a particular manufacturer and brand, effectively narrowing the call to a specific company and vehicle. As expected, Mak Autostar was the sole bidder and was awarded a contract worth 35,226,000 denars (€572,780). The contract was finalised in June 2012, and the Ministry of the Interior purchased the Mercedes shortly thereafter. The prosecution also noted that the procurement occurred despite the ministry’s financial constraints at the time.

The main trial against the defendants began in February 2018. However, in April 2018, the criminal court decided to process Jankulovska’s case separately because she had a high-risk pregnancy; this led to separate court proceedings for her. During the trial, Prosecutor Donev noted that the Ministry of the Interior initially planned to purchase an armoured vehicle for €243,000 due to budget constraints. However, under pressure from then prime minister Gruevski, a luxury vehicle worth nearly €600,000 was acquired instead. The three defendants denied the charges, with Gruevski claiming the trial was politically motivated.

On 23 May 2018, the Basic Criminal Court in Skopje sentenced Gruevski to two years in prison and Popovski to six years and six months. Jankulovska's separate trial began in August 2018, and on 8 October 2018, the court sentenced her to six years in prison. All three defendants appealed the verdicts.

On 5 October 2018, the Skopje Court of Appeals reduced Popovski’s sentence to four years and six months, while upholding Gruevski’s original two-year prison sentence. Shortly after the final verdict, Gruevski fled to Hungary to seek asylum and evade justice. Meanwhile, on 28 March 2019, the Skopje Court of Appeals reduced Jankulovska’s prison sentence to four years. Although the three defendants sought an extraordinary review of the final verdicts by the Supreme Court, their requests were rejected in September 2020.

On 28 September 2020, Jankulovska began serving her prison sentence. On 4 October 2023, the Skopje Court of Appeal accepted Jankulovska’s request for parole. After serving three years, she was conditionally released on 1 November 2023.

The "Tank" case shows how government officials prioritised personal gain over the public good. Despite financial constraints, the defendants violated procurement laws to accommodate an expensive personal desire, showing utter disregard for ethical public spending and fair tender competition. Although the case demonstrates that high-ranking officials can be held accountable, the former prime minister’s escape leaves justice incomplete in this instance. Ultimately, the wiretapping scandal underscores how public scrutiny and outrage over government abuse can set the wheels of justice in motion, ensuring at least partial accountability. In this context, constant oversight of those in power remains crucial.