After SPAK sent the file for trial, the lawyers of Tirana Mayor Erion Veliaj reacted by denying all the accusations and emphasizing that there is no evidence, fact or document to support them. In the official reaction, the lawyers say that no page of the request for trial proves any connection between his activity as Mayor and any illegal privilege for any private entity and no abuse of the public office entrusted to him for three terms by the citizens of Tirana; and above all, there is no evidence, fact or document to support the accusations.
The lawyers point out that despite the impressions that SPAK's statement may create, no preliminary judge or court has yet reviewed any of the charges or evidence in support of them.
“We are concerned by the disregard for the basic norms that guide the conduct of criminal investigations and prosecutions in a democratic justice system. No mature and responsible investigator or prosecutor should make such statements, as this violates the presumption of innocence and shows either a fundamental misunderstanding or a total disregard for the principles of criminal justice,” the lawyers emphasize.
They add that, whether a prosecutor thinks he has “proved” a case according to legal standards, this is a matter for the reviewing court alone, and not for public statements that could influence public opinion or the court.
Veliaj's lawyers also state that the process has the following characteristics:
it was initiated on an anonymous and falsified complaint;
it was conducted for at least 7 months without valid legal authorization;
it was based on the opening of private correspondence without court authorization;
it included self-incriminating statements taken under pressure;
it was led by an individual who has never been a legal prosecutor of the Republic;
it violated the investigative deadlines set by law;
it denied the right to defense and objections to the investigation.
The lawyers point out that Mr. Veliaj has been assigned a security measure that they consider extraordinary and disproportionate, while he exercises his constitutional mandate as the elected Mayor of Tirana, with the support of 160 thousand citizens.
"We remain determined to dismantle, line by line, every claim raised in this process, not only to protect the first citizen of Tirana, but also to protect the citizens' trust in justice and the constitutional order. Every line of the request filed in court will be dismantled there itself, based on the law," concludes the statement of Erion Veliaj's lawyers.
