The dynamics of the father-and-son killings in Dukagjin / Attackers fired two guns! Investigative leads

Last night, a double murder shocked Shkodër, where two people, 82-year-old Prelë Gjoni and his 57-year-old son, Lekë Gjoni, were shot dead, while Lazër Bashi, who happened to be in the vehicle, was wounded.

The SUV they were traveling in was riddled with bullets.

The two victims were returning from their old home in Dukagjin toward Shkodër when, before they had even left the road in the village of Xhan, two unidentified individuals opened fire on them, killing the father and son and wounding another person.

The injured man was taken to Shkodër Hospital and later transferred to Tirana for specialized treatment. He is currently in stable condition and out of danger. Lazër Bashi miraculously survived the attack while he was in the rear of the SUV.

Dozens of police officers and members of the RENEA special unit immediately arrived at the scene, launching searches in the area to identify, and subsequently locate and arrest, the perpetrators.

Police found more than 50 bullet casings at the scene. Two weapons were used—an AK-47 assault rifle and an MP5—confirming that at least two people fired at the SUV carrying the two victims.

Testimonies

The victims’ relatives told police that Prelë and Lekë Gjoni had no conflicts and said they had no idea who the perpetrators might be. The family confirmed that, one day before the killings, the father and son had gone to the old residence, where they kept several beehives, and were returning normally toward Grudë in Shkodër, where they lived.

Investigation

Police are currently focusing their suspicions in this murder case on the 57-year-old man’s divorce from his wife three months ago. They have four children together. However, there is still no concrete evidence linking the killings to the divorce, but this is the lead on which the investigative team focused immediately after the double murder.

Lekë Gjoni worked with a truck and, in recent days, had transported construction materials for a house in the village of Gjuraj in Dukagjin. He also had an excavator and was working with another local resident. Police did not know him as a problematic person, and there is no information about any possible external conflicts.

Police and the prosecutor’s office are continuing their investigation to fully clarify the incident. Linking the evidence to possible perpetrators remains difficult because of the rugged mountainous terrain, the lack of mobile phone signal in the area, and the fact that the roads and forests are not monitored by security cameras.