Ilir Selmani appears before the Special Court under tight security, SPAK seeks to keep 28-year prison sentence in force

This Wednesday, former boxer Ilir Selmani was brought under heightened security measures to the Special Court of Appeal for Corruption and Organized Crime (GJKKO), where a hearing was scheduled to be held for the retrial of his case. However, the review did not take place and was postponed to another date.

During the hearing, the Special Prosecution Office (SPAK) requested that the First Instance ruling, which sentenced Selmani to 28 years in prison, remain in force.

The postponement of the hearing at the GJKKO Appeals Court came after Ilir Selmani’s defense lawyers had not prepared their final conclusions. At the same time, the court also approved his request to change his place of residence, due to unsuitable conditions in the home where he is currently staying under the security measure of “house arrest.”

Currently, Ilir Selmani is under the security measure of “house arrest,” after the legal deadlines for his pretrial detention expired. Earlier, the High Court had decided to overturn the Appeals ruling and return the case for retrial to the Special Court of Appeal.

The First Instance court found Ilir Selmani guilty as a member of the so-called “Duka Clan,” a group which, according to the prosecution, organized and carried out the execution of former police officer Santiago Malko in August 2019 in Tirana. Malko was considered the right-hand man of Ervis Martinaj, who has been reported missing since 2022.

Meanwhile, on Monday evening, near Selmani’s home, which is guarded by large numbers of police forces, Emiljano Nina was arrested with a weapon. He is considered a person with close links to Ervis Martinaj’s group. Following this development, investigators have raised suspicions that there may have been a plan for a revenge attack.