In a recent development in Himara, Albania, Jorgo Goro, the acting mayor, was arrested on Saturday evening under suspicion of allowing irregular registration of two coastal properties through forged documents. These properties, after several transactions, were transferred to businessman Artan Gaçi, the husband of former Foreign Minister Olta Xhaçka, with the intention of constructing a tourist complex on the coast of Dhërmi.
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| Acting Mayor of Himara Jorgo Goro in a public appearance for the local media |
Additionally, arrest warrants have been issued for Stavri Mëhilli, the heir of the property, as well as for two officials from the Cadastre in Vlorë. Despite this, Jerasimo Bashi, the Director of Land Defense and Management Department in Himara Municipality, remains unaccounted for.
Beleri, the elected mayor, alleged a series of forgeries regarding the reported area, stating discrepancies in cadastral numbers and the registration of agricultural land as real estate. The Prokuroria e Posaçme (Special Prosecution) stated that Goro, in collaboration with Bashi, facilitated the registration of a 5512 m2 area of state-owned agricultural land in favor of a private entity through entirely forged documents.
The prosecution further accused Goro of engaging in actions that resulted in unjust enrichment for another individual, Stavri Mëhilli. Mëhilli is alleged to have used forged documents and forms multiple times to register the land in the name of Foto Mëhilli, resulting in subsequent transactions that ultimately transferred ownership to a private company represented by Gaçi.
Gaçi, also implicated by Beleri, allegedly orchestrated these practices to transfer the land to Xhaçka's husband, including part of the area where he intended to build a tourist complex. This land had been placed under seizure by the Special Court in October of the previous year. Xhaçka defended the seizure at the time, stating it was to investigate the origin of a private property since 1994.
The construction of the tourist complex by Gaçi had previously been a subject of political debate in parliament, with Xhaçka's husband benefiting from strategic investor status. The opposition had raised concerns about a conflict of interest, prompting a request for Xhaçka's mandate to be revoked, which was rejected by the socialist majority. The case was referred to the Constitutional Court over a year ago, but it has yet to be reviewed.