The file of the "century" is sealed, Sali Berisha dismisses the accusations for the murder of Azem Hajdari, this is how the former prime minister avoided justice all these years, he refused over 50 calls from the courts and the prosecution

Yesterday, the Supreme Court overturned Izet Haxhia's appeal, upholding the 2022 Appeal decision, which also upheld Haxhia's 21-year prison sentence for the murder of MP Azem Hajdari in 1998. Izet Haxhia sought the annulment of the decision and the return of the case for retrial with another judicial body for serious violations of the procedural rules of the trial or, alternatively, the declaration of innocence. We remind you that Izet Haxhia was arrested in Turkey and although he gained asylum status, he decided to return to Albania, where the process was reopened. His extradition lasted for years and Haxhia arrived in Albania after 12 years. Haxhia was extradited in May 2018, after the Serious Crimes Court accepted his request for a retrial, overturning the court's previous conviction. He stated at that time that he had surrendered to the Turkish police.

Haxjia blames Sali Berisha

Izet Haxhia has denied that he had a role in the murder of former deputy of the Democratic Party Azem Hajdari on September 12, 1998. "I did not ambush Azem Hajdari. Before he was killed, Hajdari was in a meeting with Sali Berisha. Azemi was informed that there was a vehicle with tritol outside the PD. When the adviser informed him, he was in Berisha's office. When he got to the car, Azemi knocked on the window. Jaho Mulosmani was the driver of the car, he did not shoot. The one who shot was Fatmir Haklaj. When the incident happened, I was with Halil Haklajn. Azemi and I were co-founders of the DP. I felt so used. The assassination was done to overthrow Fatos Nano. Fatmir Haklaj told me that he did not go to kill Azem", Haxhia is said to have expressed in court. According to Izet Haxhi, the sensational murder was preceded by a meeting on September 1, 1998, between Azem Hajdari himself and Muharrem Haklaj. Haxhia says that Azem Hajdari had informed Muharrem Haklaj that the order to kill his son had come from the office on the second floor, meaning Sali Berisha. In fact, Sali Berisha's former bodyguard claimed that he also had a tape recorded at the June 21 rally. In order to secure this tape, Fatmir Haklaj had asked Izet Haxhija to help him meet Myftar Lumnesh and Dem Dollap, a meeting held in a bar in the Linza area, which also served as the base of the State Intelligence Service. Izet Haxhia stated that the meeting could not take place as Lumneshi had traveled with Azem Hajdar to Fier. As for the day of the event, Haxhia stated that he was in a billiard room near the house, when a car driven by Jaho Mulosmani arrived and Halil Haklaj was also in it. He also claims that he was not involved in the murder of Hajdar and that he should be punished only for his involvement in the events of September 14, after having attacked the institutions with weapons.

Sali Berisha dismisses the accusations

With the "sealing" given by the Supreme Court, Berisha puts an end to these accusations and there will be no investigation for him. This is not the first time that the former prime minister escapes from justice. The newspaper has provided details from the investigation file of the prosecutor's office for the murder of Hajdar and according to the data, Berisha has avoided summons to the court and the prosecutor's office more than 50 times. From the data, it is known that during the investigations, the prosecution itself called Sali Berisha to testify 25 times, and at no time did he appear before the prosecution body. Meanwhile, other times he was summoned to all levels of the judiciary where the process continued and he refused. According to the information, it is about more than 50 call sheets which were thrown in the bin by the former prime minister. But Berisha avoided justice and decided to confess to the embassies. "I gave my testimony about Azem's murder with full will. I didn't do it to Arben Rakipi. He was the criminal lawyer at the time. My testimony was given to the American ambassador who submitted it to the Prosecutor's Office. It was our insistence on international investigation and they came and convicted some of them. Others eliminated them from the file. Azem's direct killers were punished, the organizers were not in our hands. I said everything and I knew quite a bit", Berisha declared some time ago.

This is how Hajdar's murder happened

The former deputy of the Democratic Party, Azem Hajdari, was executed on the evening of September 12, 1998, a few meters from the headquarters of the Democratic Party in the capital. His bodyguard, Besim Cera from Dibra, also died from the barrage of bullets. Jaho Mulosmani and the three brothers, Izet, Ismet and Isamedin Haxhia, people who were very close to Prime Minister Berisha, were accused of murdering the former December leader. The prosecution at that time claimed that the former bodyguard of Prime Minister Sali Berisha, Izet Haxhia, called Hajdar and took him out of his office, where ten minutes later he was executed in an ambush, although such a moment remains unclear.