“Adriatik Llalla committed the criminal crime and should be held criminally responsible,” said the judge of the Court of Appeal Nertina Kosova, rejecting her request for annulment of the sentence.

Llalla, who is also banned from holding any public office for five years, was not present in court for the ruling. He would normally start serving his sentence immediately, but his lawyer said the exact whereabouts of Llalla was unknown.

Lawyer Sokol Hazizaj said he knew Llalla was hospitalized but could not clarify whether it was in Albania or abroad.

Llalla was unable to justify the money behind his purchase and sale of some 5.4 acres of land and the purchase of an apartment. He also failed to justify his family’s expenses in the United States and Germany.

The fight against corruption has been the Achilles heel of post-communist Albania, strongly affecting the democratic, economic and social development of the country.

Llalla was the first high-ranking person to be sentenced by newly created judicial institutions to fight corruption. Many judges and prosecutors have been dismissed for alleged corruption and illegal acquisition of property and money.

Judicial reform, which was approved in 2016 with the participation of the United States and the European Union, introduced a verification process for judges and prosecutors to prove that their property was acquired legally and that it met the requirements. anti-corruption and professional standards.

In 2018, Llalla was banned from entering the United States due to his alleged involvement in corruption. In May, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also sanctioned former Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha for alleged “significant corruption” and barred him, his wife and children from entering the country.

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