The former director of the Saspac Agency, Ilir Beqaj, together with Ermal Kurtulajn and Alfred Nikollajn, will continue to remain in the security measure “arrest in prison”, imposed by the Special Court.

The decision was confirmed on Friday, after the Special Prosecutor’s Office read the updated information requested by the lawyers at the last hearing.

Beqaj, Kurtulaj and Elton Martini requested the replacement of the security measure, but this request was rejected by the court.

In July of this year, Ilir Beqaj was arrested by order of the prosecutor Elida Kaçkini, who conducted the investigations for the abuse of the funds of the European Union Fund Management Agency. In addition to Beqaj, Ermal Kurtulaj and Alfred Nikolaj also ended up in prison, while Gazmend Haxhija and Elton Martini were placed under house arrest.

Meanwhile, for Bledar Leka and Bjona Ziaj, the court has set the easiest measure, “obligation to appear.”

The charge, for which Beqaj was put in handcuffs, is not related to his duties as Minister of Health in 2013-2017, but with the post he held as the head of the SASCAP State Agency, created to manage foreign donor aid, from 2021.

The security measure was taken at the request of SPAK also for hiding the wealth and ownership in a restaurant named GZONA in the fortress of Tirana.

In the years 2022-2023, prosecutors have discovered a corrupt scheme with at least 8 activities and conferences, where the winners or organizers were predetermined.

In a case of service for a conference, prosecuted for 125 thousand euros, it turned out that the winning company only offered dinner worth 4 million lek. This dinner was offered in the restaurant that was managed in the shadow by the former minister.