The testimony of Astrit Kalaja's secretary, before whose eyes the judge was shot to death in the courtroom, is revealed. She stated that the perpetrator Elvis Shkëmbi, after shooting Judge Kalaja, turned from where he said that "there is nothing wrong with him, and turned to the judge and shot him again."
According to the secretary, after shooting the judge a second time, she sat under the table and heard the judge groaning.
Judge Kalaja was executed from the courtroom by Elvis Shkambi, 30. His uncle Gjon Shkambi has also been arrested as an instigator of the crime.
Secretary's testimony
Xh.K., acting as court secretary, at the Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction of Tirana, with Judge Astrit Kalaja, declares that on 06.10.2025, at around 15:35-15:40, she called for the opening of the court session scheduled for the announcement of the decision. She called all the parties to the process with a microphone, and only four people appeared, the plaintiff Ragip Kurtaj and a person who introduced himself as Ragip's son, and two people from the defendant, Gjon Shkambi and another person who she later learned was called Elvis Shkambi, who accompanied Gjon. The parties sat down and the judge opened the court session, where she said that the previous session had been postponed for the announcement of the decision. The judge asked Ragip who he was and asked him to hand over his ID card. Ragip's son intervened, but the judge told him that he was listening and the gentleman (Ragipi) could speak for himself. Immediately after this, the judge announced the decision in which he expressed the upholding of the decision of the Court of First Instance, cited the deadlines for recourse to the Supreme Court and then declared the session closed. At this moment, Ragip Kurtaj and his son were the first to leave the courtroom. At this moment, the judge stood up and turned to his right to go towards the consultation room, while as he remembered, citizen Gjon Shkambi was at the door leaving, and a person who was with Gjon, citizen Elvis Shkambi, approached the judge's podium and fired a pistol. She stood up and placed her hands on her chest. This person turned from where she had stated that she had nothing to do with it, and turned to the judge and fired again at him. After shooting the judge a second time, she sat under the table and listened to the judge, who was groaning. At that moment, she heard a court employee, who was a courtroom security guard, but not theirs, Bledar Panariti, approach and ask "what happened". She stood up and said that they had killed the judge and saw the judge lying down. She went out into the hallway and shouted "call an ambulance", while a court employee approached and together they entered the consultation room. This employee went and got a towel and came back where they used that towel to press the wound the judge had on his left hip. She remembers that the judge was lying down, the lower half of his body in the courtroom, the upper half in the consultation room. After seeing the judge, he had no reaction.
