Businessman Samir Mane appeared on Wednesday afternoon at the premises of the Special Prosecution against Corruption and Organized Crime. According to media reports, Mane arrived at SPAK around 6:00 p.m. So far there is no official notice clarifying the procedural capacity in which he was summoned.
Të lidhura
None found
His appearance is reported to be related to the SPAK investigation into family villa no. 188/1 in the “Green Coast” complex in Palasë, a property placed under preventive seizure and which the Special Prosecution claims is actually owned by former deputy prime minister Belinda Balluku, although in the documentation the property has been linked to the name of former footballer Igli Tare.
According to data made public from the investigative file, on 26 October 2020 a works contract was signed in the name of Igli Tare with a value of 250,000 euros. SPAK claims that this amount covered construction of the villa up to the shell phase and that the documentation was used to hide the real ownership of the property.
Another part of the investigation relates to further work on the villa. According to SPAK, investments after the shell phase, including other construction work and the swimming pool, are suspected to have been taken over by businessman Arbër Abazi, owner of the company “Alko Impex General Construction.” The cost estimates gathered by investigators value this work at between around 288,000 and 410,000 euros. Abazi’s company was part of the consortium of economic operators that won Lot 7 of the Tirana Outer Ring Road, a procedure that is also part of SPAK’s investigations.
The case file also contains electronic communications and documents related to the design and construction of the villa. Also on Wednesday, architects Alban and Olsi Eftimi, heads of the studio “Atelier 4,” appeared at SPAK. In materials published by the media, projects, cost estimates and electronic communications are mentioned, including a September 2020 email in which Alban Eftimi sent Balluku variants of the villa project to her personal address.
Samir Mane’s name appears in this story also because of the development of the complex where the property is located. Genti Tare, Igli Tare’s brother, has publicly contested SPAK’s version of the villa’s actual ownership. He has stated that Igli Tare negotiated the purchase of the villas himself with Samir Mane and that payments were made from his bank account. According to Genti Tare, the villa belongs to Igli Tare and the claim that it was Balluku’s hidden asset does not stand.
SPAK, on the other hand, claims that the evidence gathered during the investigation — including documentation, electronic communications and the way the works were financed — shows a different ownership situation and is investigating whether the investments in the villa constitute irregular benefits linked to public procurement procedures. The investigations continue, and the prosecution’s claims remain to be finally proven in judicial proceedings.
