Director General of the State Police Haki Çako has been dismissed today from his function, after the Council of Ministers approved a proposal of Minister of Interior Fatmir Xhafaj to that end.\
According to a press declaration, Minister Xhafaj has justified Çako’s dismissal with the need for “new energies” in the State Police:
The realization of the objectives of this government mandate in the field of public order and security, the challenges awaiting the State Policem, require a faster rhythm and great working dynamic.
For this reason a new leadership is necessary, with new energies to motivate and advance the work of the State Police.
The work […] needs to be oriented toward concrete results, with the aim of better responding to the requirements of this new phase and the high expectations of the public and international partners concerning the State Police.
Minsiter Xhafaj has recommend deputy director Rebani Jaupi as Çako’s replacement.
Çako was nominated Director General in April 2015 after the resignation of Artan Didi. He previously was deputy director. Çako had a long track record in the criminal police and was instrumental in the intervention in Lazarat, at the beginning of the Rama–Meta government in 2013.
One of the scandals of Çako’s tenure that remains unsolved was the usage of an unregistered wiretapping device by the State Police. In June 2016, Çako was suspended from his duty by the Court of Tirana, after he was accused by the opposition of allowing the so-called IMCI Catcher to enter Albanian territory without the appropriate authorization of the Prosecution Office.
A few days after this decision, Çako was reinstated by the Appeals Court, even though during three interrogation sessions Çako had given three conflicting accounts regarding the device. Then Minister of Interior Affairs Saimir Tahiri, involved in the scandal, has recently come under investigation for corruption and international drug trafficking.
