The drug trafficking hearing of former Interior Minister Saimir Tahiri and former Director of Vlora Police Jaeld Cela was postponed on Monday and rescheduled for 5 January.
The reason for the postponement was the sense of Cela’s lawyers from the hearing. They claimed they were absent due to health reasons and one attended another case in Lezhe. The judge fined one of them, Gentian Romani 5000 A (EUR40) for his absence.
Tahiri was arrested in 2017 for involvement in a structured criminal group suspected of drug trafficking with the Habilaj brothers, relatives of the former minister. In 2019, Tahiri was acquitted of drug trafficking and participation in a structured criminal group but was sentenced to five years for abuse of office, a sentence that was reduced to 3.4 years due to Tahiri opting for an abbreviated trial.
Prosecutor’s had originally demanded 12 years in prison. It is also not clear how he could be found guilty of abuse of office, yet not of any other crime that would have involved him abusing his position.
The decision was overturned by the Special Court of Appeals because Tahiri was sentenced for a crime he was not originally charged with. The case is due to be reconsidered.
Former Interior Minister Tahiri Sentenced for Unrelated Charge, Appeals Court Rules
