Shpend Ahmeti, the former mayor of the Municipality of Pristina, appeared before the Basic Court in Pristina to face charges of failing to declare assets.

Ahmeti pleaded not guilty, while regarding the sum of more than €172,000 that he allegedly failed to report, he said it was financial assistance received from his family.

According to “Betimi për Drejtësi,” Special Prosecutor Dren Paca said in his opening statement that the allegations in the indictment would be substantiated through the evidence to be examined during the proceedings.

Among this evidence, Paca cited the official response from the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, asset declaration forms for the years 2018-2022 during Ahmeti’s term as mayor, information obtained from banks and the financial expert report.

The prosecutor said that the examination of these materials would prove that the defendant had deposited €172,000 without including it in his asset declarations.

Ahmeti’s defense, represented by lawyer Arbër Istrefi, fully contested the indictment, arguing that none of the required elements of the criminal offense in question had been met.

Istrefi said the amounts allegedly left undeclared had been deposited into bank accounts by his client himself. He stressed that the money was not of criminal origin and that there had been no intention to conceal it.

In his testimony, Ahmeti said that during the relevant period, he had several times undergone a full asset audit by the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption and had never received any remarks or notification of a problem.

He explained that, by law, full audits are conducted through a lottery in which 20 percent of officials are selected, and that he himself had been selected several times. According to him, the Law on the Prevention of Corruption stipulates that when the Agency identifies irregularities, it must notify the official in writing and give them 15 days to correct the declaration. Ahmeti said he had received no written notice from the Agency following the audits.

Lawyer Istrefi requested that a legal official from the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption be called as a witness. The trial panel rejected the proposal, reasoning that the APC had already provided answers regarding the facts the defense sought to establish through the witness.

After the documentary evidence was admitted, the proceedings continued with the defendant presenting his defense.

Ahmeti said the money deposited during the years 2018-2022 constituted financial support from his family to cover various expenses, as his wife was unemployed during that period. He insisted that he had never intended to conceal the funds.

He said he had not reported the amount because he did not believe he was required to do so. Nevertheless, according to him, the money had been deposited in a bank precisely to ensure full transparency.

Ahmeti described the situation, in the worst-case scenario for him, as a technical error and reiterated that he had never intended to conceal assets.

According to the former mayor of Pristina, his family members had given him the money as assistance and had earned it through their work. He said their only motivation had been their love for him.

Ahmeti also said that he had been part of the Vetëvendosje Movement’s parliamentary group, where he had provided comments on the Law on the Prevention of Corruption. He added that he had received assistance from family members both before and after serving as mayor.

During closing arguments, Prosecutor Dren Paca said it had been proven that Ahmeti had failed to accurately report income that he was legally required to declare.

The prosecution asked that Ahmeti be found guilty and sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison, as well as fined €5,000. Paca also proposed the confiscation of assets equal to the amount left undeclared, or other assets of equivalent value.

In the defense’s closing argument, lawyer Istrefi referred to a Supreme Court ruling and said, among other things, that even in the most unfavorable scenario, Ahmeti’s actions could only be treated as a misdemeanor.

He argued that it had not been established in any way, beyond reasonable doubt, that his client had committed the criminal offense with which he was charged. According to Istrefi, it had also been proven that there had been no intention to conceal the funds.

In conclusion, the lawyer asked the Court to issue a judgment on the merits acquitting Ahmeti.

Ahmeti also pleaded not guilty at the initial hearing held on January 21, 2026.

The indictment against Shpend Ahmeti was filed on December 23, 2025, by the Special Prosecution Office of the Republic of Kosovo. According to the indictment, while serving as mayor of the Municipality of Pristina, from 2018 through 2022, he had a legal obligation to accurately, fully and promptly report his assets, income, gifts, financial benefits and financial liabilities.

According to the indictment, this obligation arose from Law No. 04/L-228 amending and supplementing Law No. 04/L-050, as well as Law No. 08/L-108 on the Declaration, Origin and Control of Assets and Gifts. The prosecution alleges that when submitting his annual declarations to the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, Ahmeti deliberately provided inaccurate information about his assets by failing to report his actual income.

The indictment states that Ahmeti failed to declare cash deposits that he personally made during the relevant years into his account, either directly or through ATMs, totaling €118,200.

It is also alleged that he failed to report €54,400 received in the personal accounts of his mother, L.A. In total, the funds considered undeclared amount to €172,600.

For these actions, Ahmeti is accused of continuously committing the criminal offense of “Failure to report or falsely reporting assets, income, gifts, other material benefits or financial liabilities,” as stipulated in Article 430, paragraph 2, in conjunction with Article 77 of the Criminal Code.

The post Shpend Ahmeti on the Undeclared €172,600: It Was Financial Support from Family Members appeared first on Albeu.com.