The Durrës Prosecution Office has closed the investigation into the legality of Nezar Seiti’s extradition to Italy.
According to Balkanweb, this decision was also approved by the Durrës Court, arguing that the actions taken by various institutions in Seiti’s extradition did not constitute a criminal offense, but rather a disciplinary one.
Nezar Seiti, the only member of the Habilaj gang to be arrested in Albania, was apprehended by police on October 19, in Babica, Vlora. During his arrest 4.5 tonnes of cannabis were also confiscated. A few days before he was arrested, the Italian authorities had released a warrant for his arrest, as member of the Habilaj gang.
The Albanian Serious Crimes Prosecution Office launched an investigation into Seiti, and he was left awaiting trial in prison for 20 days.
On January 25, 2018, Nezar Seiti was extradited to Italy, in violation of article 491 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
According to the Criminal Procedure Code, extradition may only be allowed if a request is made to the Ministry of Justice. This written request comes with all the necessary documentation attached, including one proving that the extradited is not being already investigated or tried in Albania. The Prosecution Office is responsible for verifying that the person is indeed not under investigation and may be extradited.
On January 26, 2018, General Prosecutor Arta Marku admitted that Seiti’s extradition was unlawful. She claimed that the law was infringed because the Directory of Foreign Jurisdictional Relations, a department subordinate to Marku was unaware that another department subordinate to Marku, that is the Serious Crimes Prosecution Office, was investigating Seiti. That is why the Directory had authorized the extradition on behalf of the Temporary General Prosecutor.
Seiti is currently in Italy, where the Catania recently reduced his remand from “awaiting trial in prison” to “house arrest.”
