Arben Ahmetaj still on the run / SACS once again facing new deadlines

SACS has decided to extend for the fifth time the investigative deadlines for former Deputy Prime Minister Arben Ahmetaj, who is being investigated in connection with the incinerator case. The decision comes due to delays in receiving responses from letters rogatory sent to Switzerland, as well as the ongoing, incomplete process of examining his mobile device.

The new deadline for completing the investigation is set for December 23, 2025, a date that could mark the formal closure of the investigation into the former number two of the government. Currently, Arben Ahmetaj has been on the run since July 2023, never presenting himself to Albanian justice.

In addition to Ahmetaj himself, other individuals linked to him are under investigation, including his current partner, his former partner Albina Mançka, and citizen Erjola Hoxha. They face charges of “concealment and non-declaration of assets” and “money laundering,” as part of a broader inquiry into assets suspected to have been obtained illegally.

SACS officially declared Arben Ahmetaj wanted on July 10, 2023, accusing him of multiple high-level corruption offenses. He is suspected of “passive corruption of high-ranking state officials,” “money laundering,” and “non-declaration of assets.” This investigation is one of the most closely followed by the public, as it relates to one of the most controversial issues in recent years: the incinerator concessions.

Simultaneously, Ahmetaj is also being tried in the First Instance Court in the “Buka Sha” case, accused of “abuse of office.” While this case is lower profile, it still highlights a series of issues regarding the exercise of public duties.

The repeated extensions of the investigation have triggered different reactions among the public, as well as within political and legal circles. For some, the extensions indicate the seriousness of the investigation, which requires time to receive international responses and complete technical analyses. For others, it signals a lack of efficiency in the justice system in advancing sensitive cases against high-ranking political figures.

If no significant progress is made by December 23, it remains unclear whether a sixth extension will be granted or whether SACS will formally conclude the investigation and proceed to court, even in the absence of the main defendant.

“KORÇA BOOM”