On October 28, 2026, the Basic Court in Peja, Department, ordered Albert Sylaj to be held in pre-trial detention. He is suspected of murdering his former sister-in-law, Arlinda Zekaj, in Vitomiricë, Peja.
According to the ruling obtained by “Betimi për Drejtësi,” the detention will last until November 27, 2026.
Të lidhura
None found
During the hearing, prosecutor Sahide Gashi said that the Peja Regional Police had filed a criminal report against Sylaj on October 27. She said the report was preceded by investigators’ reports and that, after reviewing the evidence, formal investigations against the suspect had begun.
The prosecutor said there was a well-founded suspicion that Sylaj had brutally murdered Arlinda Zekaj in retaliation for his brother, Jeton Sylaj, being detained by police. According to the ruling, Gashi said this suspicion was also supported by the evidence gathered so far.
The prosecution assessed that releasing the defendant or imposing another alternative measure would create a risk that he might flee and evade criminal proceedings. It based this position on the fact that Sylaj had left after the murder, as well as on the potential sentence for the offense he is suspected of committing, which could be life imprisonment.
The prosecutor also said that investigators had not yet interviewed the eyewitnesses to the case. They include the defendant’s mother, his daughter and son, the victim’s son, all of them minors, as well as his wife and his brother, Driton. Investigators are also expected to interview other people with knowledge of the circumstances of the case, including the victim’s family members and relatives, and police officers involved in related cases.
The ruling states that Sylaj also admitted to possessing an unlicensed firearm, which has not yet been seized. The criminal records extract also shows that he has been convicted in four final judgments.
His court-appointed defense lawyer, Katarina Voksani, said that although her client had fled, he had voluntarily surrendered at his home in Deçan.
According to the lawyer, before surrendering, Sylaj had called his mother to ask for her “final blessing,” because he was in a state in which he might take his own life.
“…but beforehand, he called his mother and asked for her final blessing because he was in a state where he might commit suicide over such an act that he had committed. But his mother, like any mother, told him: ‘If you want to see me dead too, then, by the milk I gave you, do not commit such an act; surrender to the law enforcement authorities, who will take into account all the circumstances that led you to take such action.’” Voksani was quoted as saying.
The lawyer said that later, police officers went to the defendant’s home with his family members to arrest him.
Voksani claimed that Sylaj’s other brother, who is at liberty, was also at the house and that the police had brutally assaulted him, mistaking him for the suspect.
“After some time, he came out with his hands raised and said, ‘I am surrendering for my mother’s sake.’” Voksani said.
The defense lawyer asked the court to impose bail on Albert Sylaj. She argued that there was no risk of flight and that her client had cooperated with police during his arrest.
Sylaj endorsed his lawyer’s statement and made no further comments.
The court found that the prosecution’s request for pre-trial detention was well-founded. Its conclusion took into account the manner and circumstances of the offense, the risk of flight, the fact that the defendant had left after the incident, the possibility that he could influence witnesses who had not yet been interviewed, and his criminal record.
According to the court, other alternative measures, including the bail proposed by the defense, would not ensure the defendant’s presence throughout the criminal proceedings.
Albert Sylaj is suspected of the criminal offense of “Aggravated murder,” provided for under Article 173, paragraph 1, points 1.3 and 1.4 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kosovo (CCRK).
