A Tirana Court sentenced Italian businessman and former media owner Francesco Becchetti to 17 years in prison.
Meanwhile, the Prosecution had asked for a 20-year sentence.
Becchetti is accused of abuse of office, money laundering, forged documentation, and fraudulent VAT schemes.
The Court also sentenced Mauro De Renzis to 15-years as an accessory.
Becchetti is currently on the run due to an international arrest warrant.
Albania lost a lawsuit against the former media owner after the latter sought compensation for shutting down his television channel in 2015.
The appeal of the Albanian state was overruled, leaving in force a judgment of the Arbitrage Court from 2019 requiring that Albania pay €110 million in reparations after deeming that the reason why Agon Channel was shut down was “politically motivated”.
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