TIRANA, April 6 – The Special Court accepted on Thursday the request of the special prosecution for serious crime, SPAK, and indicted the former Minister of Defense, Fatmir Mediu, on charges of “Abuse of duty” under the Criminal and Military Code.
The court also accepted the request of Mediu’s lawyers to try him with a shortened procedure, which means that if he is found guilty, he will benefit from a reduced sentence.
As parties in the process, at the request of the Prosecutor’s Office, the families of the victims of the explosion in Gërdec were not admitted, which was considered a violation of the procedure by their lawyer, Dorian Matlija.
According to SPAK, Mediu has damaged the interests of the state and favored 2 companies, ‘SAC’ and ‘Albademil’. For this matter, he is accused of “abuse of duty” referring to the Criminal Code and “abuse of duties” in cooperation with a military subject-command cadre.
But the former minister claims innocence, arguing that the demolition was carried out with the same bylaws and continued to be carried out even after the tragedy. The media has quoted him as saying earlier that the process against him is politically motivated.
The village of Gerdec located around 15 kilometers from Tirana was almost demolished in March 2008 when the ammunition depot exploded and the whole area was flattened, leaving 26 dead, including children. /Argumentum.al
