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| The clasp knife by Saimir Mitescu |
While online shopping has become a trend in Tirana the occasions that you can end up in jail are rare. In Patos, a man has been sentenced to eight months in prison for buying a clasp knife in Hong Kong. The decision has been delivered by the Fier Judicial District Court on 2 December. Saimir Mitescu (Hoxhaj), married with three children, residing in the '29 Mars' neighborhood in Patos, says that by the middle of this year, he liked a $ 19 internet knife and ordered it on eBay.
The order arrived a few weeks later by mail in Tirana. The 37-year-old has been notified and went to get his order. There he met police officers who interrogated him. Mitescu tells them he made the order and wanted the clasp knife to help slaughter the pigs, as he has a regular stable of pigs, while his clasp knife has been seized. A few weeks later, the 37-year-old says the police called him again and took him to court after a lawsuit has been filed against him. After several hearings, the court sentenced him to eight months in prison.
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| Saimir Mitescu (Hoxhaj) |
Faced with this fact, Mitescu has also an appeal for all who make online purchases. “I ordered an on-line clasp knife, came to me by mail. At the moment the clasp knife arrived, they considered it a cold weapon. The competent authorities informed me that it has been qualified as a cold weapon and I will be judged for this weapon. I made purchases online in the past, but not a clasp knife. Thinking it wouldn't be a problem for a clasp knife. Who thought would be considered a dangerous weapon and punished. I was sentenced to eight months in prison. I have appealed the case. I believe in Appeal they will drop me a decision or ... I know. I want to urge people to be careful about what they order online. They may end up in jail for something that is considered dangerous, which can be antique. They tell me that I should have received permission from the authorities. I did not knew this from the beginning. After the trial started I went in and got interested and then it turns out that I don't need permission to buy a clasp knife,” Mitescu said.
Mitescun is charged with the criminal offense of "Manufacturing, Holding, Buying or Selling Unlawful Weapons". Mitescu has appealed to the FIeri court's decision and expects justice to act.
