For several months, the Tirana Prosecution Office has decided to suspend the investigation into the renowned historian Zyhdi Shehi, who passed away in August 2024, a few weeks after the serious incident in which his roommate, Virgjil Vesho, was found massacred in a nursing home in the capital.
However, Shehi's lawyers are requesting that the case not be closed and that the investigations be reopened to clarify all the circumstances of the crime. In the request submitted to the preliminary judge, lawyer Alban Qafa raises a number of questions about the way the investigations were conducted and the inconsistencies in the forensic medical expertise acts of the body of the victim, 82-year-old Virgjil Vesho.
"We demand that the investigations be carried out properly," stated lawyer Qafa, emphasizing that the initial investigation has left many uncertainties and obvious shortcomings in the evidence administered.
On the other hand, the Tirana Prosecution Office stands by its decision, emphasizing that only two nurses, who are suspected of actions that have prevented the truth from being revealed, can be charged. According to the prosecution, Zyhdi Shehi is considered the author of the incident, but because he has passed away, he can no longer be criminally investigated, which also led to the dismissal of the case against him.
The family of the late Shehi, who continues to be represented by the same lawyer who defended him after the incident, insists that the investigations were deficient. Lawyer Qafa has identified a number of inconsistencies in the acts and in the examination of the crime scene:
"They say he hit him with a cane, but that doesn't match the wound on his head. The cane is round, while the deceased has a square mark on his forehead," he stressed.
The prosecution, on the other hand, supports the accusation on the testimony of historian Shehi, which, although confusing due to his health condition (he suffered from dementia), is seen as convincing in combination with security camera footage, which shows his movements during the night in the "Ruaje Moshën" asylum.
However, lawyer Qafa is requesting that this evidence be reviewed, emphasizing that there are numerous uncertainties at the crime scene, while the two accused nurses are accused of obstructing the investigation. According to the prosecution, they attempted to conceal the incident by not immediately notifying the police, but by contacting a funeral agency, which severely damaged the crime scene and affected the quality of the material evidence.
