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The testimony of 47-year-old Saimir Kushova, the Albanian diver from Saranda who was sentenced in Norway to 15 years in prison after he retrieved 150 kg of cocaine from the sea, is revealed.
Kushova was sentenced in June of this year to 15 years in prison in Norway, she was caught by the local authorities together with 5 other Albanians as they took 150 kg of cocaine from a ship coming from Brazil.
While he is serving his sentence in Norway, another criminal trial continues against him in Saranda, where the City Prosecutor's Office has filed a charge of "violation of the rules of protection at work", related to the death of 29-year-old Englishwoman Rebecca Gannon in September 2022. in the Bay of Saranda, which was diving with Kushova's private expedition.
Together with Kushova, a 33-year-old Albanian woman was also arrested, sentenced to 4 years and 9 months in prison. Both went to Norway where they were received by 4 other Albanians, to complete the "mission" on the ship "Nordloire". According to investigations by Norwegian authorities, Kushova and the 33-year-old went to France, Spain and Italy before traveling to Norway.
Both were in Brest, France in February 2023, in Gijon, Spain in March and in Italy in April. Kushova justified herself by always taking the 33-year-old on business trips. Both did not have a return ticket when they traveled, while the 47-year-old explained that "maybe one would stay there longer".
"The trips are suspicious and may be related to similar missions they may have done in Norway," says prosecutor Hordnes.
Kushova's testimony in court
"In Albania, I did diving inspections on ships. Often it was ropes or other things that had gotten stuck below the waterline in the boat. It was the same kind of work I thought I would do in Norway. A cruise ship would be inspected at a port. All equipment would be ready for me in Norway. My colleague and I met the other accused in Oslo. Then we headed towards Husne, where a flat had been rented. There I saw diving equipment for the first time.
Not everything was as it should be and I let them know about it. The next day we traveled to Bergen to buy new equipment. In the evening, someone suddenly said that 'now we will go for that dive'. I was shocked. I didn't understand why we would do it in the middle of the night. I got scared. When I arrived at the pier I was very stressed, my vision was blurry and I couldn't see clearly. It seemed to be in a hurry. I was told to dive into the cargo ship. It was easy to find the ship. Through a hatch I saw that there was a cavity in the ship. There were several black bags. I cut the rope and took them out one by one. I had no idea what was in the bags. I thought I stole something. I was not told anything about what they contained", the Albanian declared before the Norwegian court.
"Have you seen anything like this before" , asked judge Stein Dons Heinfjell.
"- No" , answered Kushova.
When prosecutor Benedikte Hordnes began questioning the accused diver, she was also asked if he had taken the dive voluntarily or if someone had threatened him.
"- I did not do this voluntarily" , said Kushova. Before traveling to Norway, he is said to have received a message which he believes could be interpreted as a threat.
"You have to finish the job. When you are asked to dive, you must do the duty," one message is said to have read.
"What would happen if the work was not done", asked the public prosecutor.
"- Only they know", replied Kushova.
"Does it mean that you were forced to do this?" added the prosecutor.
"- You can perceive it however you want. I told them that I didn't want to dive", concluded Saimir Kushova.
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