Materials obtained following a court order suggest that the investigation was launched on the basis of anonymous unverifiable claims attributed to non-existent individuals.
Following a court order requiring the Special Prosecution Office against Corruption and Organized Crime (SPAK) to finally grant Mayor Erion Veliaj access to the evidence against him, recently discovered materials contain disturbing evidence that raises deep questions about the foundation of the entire criminal prosecution.
According to the materials discovered, the SPAK investigation appears to have been launched on the basis of anonymous claims attributed to two individuals identified as "Nesti Agoni" and "Nasta Pëllumbi", neither of whom appears in the National Civil Status Registry of Albania.
Plarent Ndreca, Mayor Veliaj's defense attorney in Albania, issued the following statement regarding the newly discovered materials:
“These alleged whistleblowers are made-up names of fictitious individuals, and the claims attributed to them are unsubstantiated and fundamentally untrustworthy. This disturbing revelation further suggests that SPAK has initiated a significant criminal prosecution of a sitting mayor on a deeply dubious and pretextual premise, highlighting serious concerns about due process, the integrity of the prosecution, and the rule of law.”
The case has attracted increasing international attention, with observers raising broader concerns about due process and the rule of law in Albania.