FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
After the dismissal of Felaj's sister, attention turns to her husband, prosecutor Bledar Valikaj; accused of links to Lendi Palaj's betting clan...
The justice system continues to pretend to cleanse itself, but in fact it deepens corruption among the black platoons.
The Special Appeals Chamber decided on July 29 to dismiss prosecutor Eranda Laze, sister of Socialist MP Ermonela Felaj, for inability to justify assets, dubious statements, and connections with persons involved in criminal activity.
A fair, but belated decision. Because behind this family scheme, in the shadows stands her husband, Tirana prosecutor Bledar Valikaj, who was catapulted into justice despite public indications of direct involvement in favoring the criminal world.
From a judicial police officer, Valikaj was appointed prosecutor at the Tirana Prosecution Office, without first passing the Vetting filter. This action by the KLP caused debate in 2019, the year when the MP's husband managed to enter the justice system.
The KLP passed the ball to the KPK, but the latter did not initiate any verification and Bledar Valikaj left it alone, as the Vetting process at the First Instance has been completed. But the signals are that Bledar Valikaj is no more pure than his sister-in-law.
Just a few weeks ago, Valikaj was summoned to SPAK to provide explanations regarding a file under investigation where the former head of the Vlora Prosecutor's Office, Aurel Zarka, was arrested. Significantly, the head of the DP parliamentary group, Gazment Bardhi, has publicly mentioned Valikaj's name as part of a scheme of favoritism and protection of criminal interests in the justice system.
But the climax of the scandal came with the case of Lendi Palaj, the owner of the “333” and “CR7” betting network, known as one of the financiers and executors of urban organized crime in Tirana. Palaj, wanted for a gun conflict in the “Ali Demi” area on June 10, 2025, surrendered to the police on June 29, after more than two weeks on the run.
What happened next? Within 48 hours, on July 1, Palaj walked out of the cell as if nothing had happened.
The decision for a mitigating measure was made after the main witness, a gas station employee who had identified Palaj as the perpetrator of the Kalashnikov shooting, changed his testimony in a spectacular manner, with a notarized statement, prepared exactly the day before Palaj surrendered.
The prosecutor in the case? Bledar Valikaj again.
Instead of deepening the investigation, checking the source of the tampering with the testimony, or verifying the pressures on the witness, Valikaj agreed with Palaj's lawyer to ease the security measure. No other evidence was presented to refute the witness's first version. No security camera, no ballistics expertise. Only a statement taken before a notary and "finally" Albanian justice convinced itself that Lendi Palaj did not fire a gun.
But who guarantees this decision-making? A prosecutor who is himself under the scrutiny of SPAK and who is protected by a political shield: his marriage to the SP MP, Ermonela Felaj, former chairwoman of the Laws Committee, deputy speaker of the Assembly and one of the figures closest to the Rilindja dome.
Today we have a fact: Felaj's sister is dismissed for unjustified wealth and suspicious contacts. But her husband, who releases criminals with multi-million-euro businesses within 48 hours, continues to be on duty. He continues to represent the prosecution on behalf of the Albanian state. /Pamphlet
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