While SPAK accuses Erion Veliaj of 13 criminal offenses, including corruption and money laundering, procedural moves are underway in the High Court that could pave the way for his release from detention. This concerns the change of the panel of judges that has so far reviewed the requests of the mayor of Tirana, as well as the inclusion in this panel of a judge who previously withdrew from reviewing a case involving Veliaj's wife, declaring a conflict of interest. If these developments are confirmed, they raise serious questions about the respect for procedural rules and the impartiality of the process.
To put it simply, the Code of Criminal Procedure provides that criminal claims of the same person be reviewed by the same criminal panel. To date, all of Erion Veliaj's claims have been reviewed by the panel composed of presiding judge Albana Boksi and members Sokol Binaj and Genti Shala.
However, following the decision of the Constitutional Court, which forced the High Court to reconsider the case and justify why the measure of “prison arrest” is the only appropriate measure for Erion Veliaj in his capacity as mayor of Tirana, the composition of the panel has been changed. Albana Boksi and Sokol Binaj will no longer be part of the judging panel and have been replaced by judges Ilir Panda and Sander Simoni. The only member who remains unchanged is Genti Shala.
But changing colleges isn't the only problem.
One of the new members of the panel, Judge Ilir Panda, is in a clear conflict of interest situation. Earlier, when he was supposed to review a request from Ajola Xoxa, Erion Veliaj's wife, he resigned, arguing that he had a family relationship with her. His resignation was accepted and the case was transferred to another panel.
Now, when Ilir Panda is part of the team that will review the security measure for Erion Veliaj, Ajola Xoxa's husband, he has not yet resigned, despite having previously admitted the existence of a conflict of interest.
Under these conditions, SPAK must submit a request for the exclusion of Ilir Panda from the trial panel, due to the conflict of interest that he himself has previously admitted.
The way this process is unfolding makes it even more important to monitor it. If developments continue at this pace, it is very likely that, amidst the scorching heat of August, the Supreme Court will make the decision that will determine the fate of the mayor of Tirana. Precisely for this reason, today more than ever, the eyes of the media and public opinion should be directed to the Supreme Court.
