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| Bashkim Dedja |
The Special Court for Corruption and Organized Crime, SCCOC, sentenced former Chairman of the Constitutional Court, Bashkim Dedja, to one year of probation today, finding him guilty of asset concealment and false declarations regarding the money used to purchase a house, local media say.
The Special Anti-Corruption Structure, SPAK, accused former judge Dedja of concealing assets in his wealth declaration form, related to a beach house and the source of a portion of the funds used to buy a house in the capital.
Former judge Dedja claimed that he borrowed a portion of this money from his brother-in-law, who had obtained it through work abroad, while the beach house was for his use.
SPAK had requested one year of imprisonment for Mr. Dedja, but SCCOC sentenced him to six months in prison, which was converted to one year of probation.
Thus, he becomes the first former judge to be convicted by the Special Court after a full cycle of the vetting process, which removed him from the high position he held in the Constitutional Court.
Former judges and prosecutors who were removed from the justice system through the vetting process are also under investigation for similar charges.
The Albanian justice system has undergone a deep structural reform in recent years, which includes the selection of judges and prosecutors based on the integrity of their assets and professional integrity.
During this process, approximately three-quarters of judges and prosecutors in the system were reviewed, and more than half of them were dismissed from their positions.