The former head of Albanian intelligence is under house arrest and is being investigated for supporting the perpetrator of a crime and for disclosing secret information. The materials suspected to belong to SHISH and hundreds of reported communications with Ergys Agasi have transformed this case from an individual investigation into a security crisis and a matter of political responsibility.
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Tirana, September 24, 2026 – Vlora Hyseni, now former director of the State Intelligence Service, is expected to appear today at 12:00 before the Special Court. She will be questioned and will be informed of the measures the court had previously imposed in her absence.
The Special Court, at the request of SPAK, has imposed on Hyseni the security measures of “house arrest” and “suspension from duty.” She is under investigation for two criminal offenses, specifically those provided for in articles 302/2 and 295/a/1 of the Criminal Code, which concern supporting the perpetrator of a crime and disclosing secret acts or data. Hyseni enjoys the presumption of innocence until a final court decision.
From Baku, via Kosovo, to house arrest
When the measures were made public on September 22, Hyseni was abroad; according to reports, she was on a work trip in Baku, Azerbaijan.
On the evening of the same day, she returned to Albania via Kosovo and surrendered to authorities at the Morina border crossing point. After that, she was escorted to her residence to enforce the Special Court’s decision.
On the very same day, Prime Minister Edi Rama proposed her dismissal and President Bajram Begaj signed the decree removing her from the leadership of SHISH. The decree entered into force immediately.
The leadership responsibilities of SHISH have been temporarily transferred to Elvis Lila, who heads the Operational Department, until a new chief is proposed and decreed.
What is official and what is alleged in the investigation
Officially, SPAK has confirmed the security measures, the criminal offenses Hyseni is suspected of, and the link of the investigative actions to criminal proceedings number 20/1 of 2025. According to the Reuters agency, the investigation is part of the broader case into corruption and tenders at the National Agency of the Information Society, AKSHI.
Report TV has made public the most serious details, relying on sources from the investigation. According to this media outlet, nine pages of diagrams and data suspected to be SHISH secrets were found in the vehicle of businessman Ergys Agasi.
According to the same reports, over 500 communications with Hyseni via the “Signal” app were found on Agasi’s phone, carried out from late June until the businessman’s arrest on August 26.
It is reported that Hyseni admitted the communications, but claimed that Agasi had been recruited as a collaborator or source for SHISH. Report TV transmits that prosecutors believe no relevant instance was notified of this relationship and that the communications went beyond a normal institutional report.
These data are claims by the prosecution and media reports; they must be confronted with Hyseni’s explanations and assessed by the court, not treated in advance as proven guilt.
Dismissal in Kosovo and questions that remained unanswered in Tirana
The case carries even more weight due to Hyseni’s past in Kosovo.
On June 30, 2021, President Vjosa Osmani and Prime Minister Albin Kurti signed the decision dismissing her from the position of deputy director of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency. The publicized decision did not give a concrete reason, so that dismissal cannot be used today as proof that Kosovo’s authorities had found violations similar to those SPAK is investigating.
Nevertheless, just a few months after leaving AKI, Hyseni was hired as security adviser to Prime Minister Rama. In March 2023, Rama proposed her for the leadership of SHISH, assessing her preparation and reputation as “a full guarantee.”
Asked whether he had sought information from Albin Kurti about the reasons for the dismissal in Kosovo, Rama described the questions as “village gossip of the political and media world.” Five days later, Hyseni was decreed by President Begaj.
It is precisely here that political responsibility begins.
Criminal responsibility is individual, while political responsibility is not
When Rama says that Hyseni’s guilt or innocence is an individual matter and that the justice system will decide, he is right. The prime minister cannot be held criminally responsible simply because an official he proposed is under investigation.
However, this argument does not close the political debate.
The head of SHISH is not an ordinary official; he or she has access to state secrets, to information from NATO partners, to human sources, and to data directly related to national security.
Rama must provide explanations for:
– What verification was carried out before Hyseni was hired as an adviser and then proposed to head SHISH?
– Was Kosovo officially asked for the file on her removal from AKI?
– What did the Prime Minister’s Office and the Presidency know about the reasons for the 2021 dismissal?
– When were the political institutions informed about the suspicions SPAK was investigating?
– Has an assessment been made of the potential damage to SHISH’s information and to international partners?
President Begaj, who decreed Hyseni in 2023, also bears responsibility. The decree should not be a formality, especially when it comes to the head of the most sensitive security institution.
SHISH is not protected merely by changing the director
Hyseni’s dismissal was a necessary step after the judicial suspension, but it is not enough.
An internal check is needed to determine what information may have been exposed, who had access to it, and whether the documents reportedly in the hands of an outsider have compromised sources, operations, or relationships with partner services.
A part of this review must remain classified. However, the Parliament, the parliamentary Security Committee, and the President must be fully informed through institutional channels.
The opposition’s demand today was to change the Parliament’s agenda and hold a debate with the prime minister on the situation at SHISH, Hyseni’s selection, and the measures to be taken to prevent similar cases.
The case that cannot be closed with the formula of “individual responsibility”
The Vlora Hyseni case constitutes a triple test: for SPAK, which must prove its suspicions with facts; for the court, which must ensure a fair trial; and for the government, which must account for how national security leaders are selected and overseen.
Her dismissal in Kosovo does not prove today’s guilt, but the appointment in Albania, despite the publicly raised questions, makes it inevitable that Edi Rama answer for the verifications he carried out and the guarantees on which he based the choice.
At the same time, the current dossier does not prove political claims that Hyseni was appointed “with the help of Belgrade” or that her actions are linked to Serbian interests. The earlier claim about a secret visit to Belgrade was officially denied by SHISH and was not publicly proven. Any such reference must be presented as a political accusation, not as fact.
Nevertheless, the serious and confirmed fact is that the person who until two days ago led Albanian intelligence is under house arrest, suspected of disclosing secret data and supporting a person under investigation.
This is enough to demand not only individual criminal responsibility, but also transparency, institutional oversight, and political accountability at the highest level.
This is reported by Bota Sot.
