Endrit Nika maintains his innocence during retrial

Endrit Nika continues to deny responsibility for the death of his partner, Maria Clara Urdangaray, during the retrial.

During the hearing at the Basic Court of Pristina, he said that he understood the indictment and declared that he did not feel guilty.

At the start of the retrial, the defense requested the appointment of an interpreter who is proficient in the Swiss German dialect. According to the defense, the current interpreter does not fully understand the defendant’s linguistic characteristics.

Judge Gazmend Bahtiri explained that, based on a notification from the Kosovo Judicial Council, interpreters are licensed for standard German and not for the German dialect used in Switzerland.

Following a request from the defendant and his lawyer, Tomë Gashi, the court decided to seek an interpreter proficient in this dialect. The hearing was adjourned and scheduled to continue on September 25 at 9:30 a.m.

Prosecutor Armend Hamiti said that the aim of the prosecution is to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Nika committed the offense for which he is being tried. The representative of the injured party, Betim Shala, also joined the criminal proceedings.

Earlier, Nika had been found guilty and sentenced to 18 years in prison for the death of Maria Clara Urdangaray. On August 1, 2023, she had fallen from the window of a hotel’s sixth floor in Kosovo Polje.

Following an appeal by the defense, the Court of Appeals remanded the case for retrial, sending it back for consideration at the first instance.