VZCZCXRO7128
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHTI #0292 1051439
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 141439Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY TIRANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6970
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC

UNCLAS TIRANA 000292 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SCE 
DOJ FOR OPDAT AND ICITAP 
 
E.O. 12958:N/A 
TAGS: PHUM KCRM PGOV PREL AL IT
SUBJECT:  SUPREME COURT SUSPENDS TWO MAJOR CRIMINAL CASES 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  SUMMARY:  The Chief Justice of the Albanian Supreme 
Court, Thimio Kondi, issued two suspension decisions in December 
2007 that froze the application of criminal sentences on two 
trafficking-related cases pending the final decision of the Supreme 
Court.  Kondi's decision froze the enforcement of the final criminal 
conviction on a human trafficking case involving two individuals who 
exploited several women for prostitution.  In another decision, 
Chief Justice Kondi suspended the application of the conviction 
against a high profile fugitive involved in a cigarette smuggling 
case.  Both decisions aroused protests from Serious Crime 
prosecutors and the media.   Although this is not a trend, the two 
suspensions are disturbing.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (U)  The Serious Crimes Prosecution Office successfully 
prosecuted an important anti-trafficking case related to the 
trafficking of women for prostitution and the use of criminal 
proceeds to fund businesses in Albania.  Fatmir Tahiraj and Arjan 
Kane, from Fier, Albania, were engaged in prostitution trafficking 
since 1997 and used the proceeds to build large businesses in Tirana 
and Fier.  Their method of trafficking was to marry Albanian women 
and then take them to Italy where they were forced into 
prostitution.  On December 11, 2007, the Serious Crimes Appeals 
Court sentenced the two individuals to 20 years in prison on charges 
of prostitution exploitation in aggravated circumstances and 
confiscated their business assets in Tirana and Fier.  Kane is in 
custody, but Tahiraj remains a fugitive. 
 
¶3. (U)  The case involved cases of three women, all of whom were 
married or engaged to the defendants.  The women testified before 
prosecutors in Albania and Italy that they had been pushed to 
prostitution in Italy.  One woman was threatened by Tahiraj that if 
she did not make a certain amount of money each day he would kill 
her relatives in Albania.  Under extreme physical and psychological 
pressure, she was forced to continue as a prostitute for more than 
two years.  The prosecution of the case involved extensive 
cooperation with Italian judicial authorities because the crimes 
occurred in both Italy and Albania.  Two of the women continued to 
live in Italy. 
 
¶4. (SBU)  Following a request by Tahiraj on December 26, 2007, Chief 
Justice Kondi suspended the decision of the Serious Crimes Appeals 
Court as it related to the confiscation of Tahiraj's assets.  Judge 
Kondi used a provision in the Criminal Procedure Code that gives the 
right to the Supreme Court Chief to freeze Appeals Court criminal 
decisions until final hearing by the Court.  While this procedure is 
a normal practice in civil cases, this was the first time that such 
a decision on a criminal case came to our attention. 
 
¶5. (U)  On December 31, 2007, Chief Justice Kondi issued another 
suspension order on a high profile cases related to cigarette 
trafficking through the port of Durres.  On June 22, 2006, the 
Serious Crimes Court had sentenced Ndoc Gjergji to five years in 
prison on charges of trafficking large quantities of cigarettes 
through the port of Durres.  Ndoc Gjergji was part of a violent 
trafficking group that used the Port of Durres to smuggle large 
quantities of cigarettes and other substances into Albania.  Other 
individuals convicted in this investigation included Leonard Koka, 
the brother of then-mayor of Durres and a close associate to former 
Prime Minister Fatos Nano.  Ndoc Gjergji has been a fugitive since 
¶2005. 
 
¶6. (U)  In Kondi's December 2007 suspension decision, he claimed 
that the execution of the criminal decision against Gjergji would 
create significant problems for Gjergji's family. Following Kondi's 
decision, Ndoc Gjergji's name was removed from the list of people 
wanted by the Police and he is considered by the court a free man 
until a final verdict by the Supreme Court on his appeal. 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  These decisions were unusual not only because there have 
not been a great many suspensions approved by the court, but also 
because they provided lenient measures to fugitives that have tried 
to escape justice for several years.  Judge Kondi's term in office 
expires in May 2008. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) COMMENT:  While these two cases do not suggest a trend, 
they are disturbing in light of their relation to two serious 
criminal cases, one involving human trafficking.  They clearly send 
the wrong signal at a time when Albania is claiming to be focused on 
judicial reform and eradication of organized crime.  While the 
decisions by the Supreme Court are negative, they highlight the 
success of the Serious Crime Prosecutors Office and Serious Crimes 
Court, both of which have established a solid crime-fighting 
reputation since their establishment in 2004. 
 
WITHERS