TIRANA, Jan. 9 – The Court of Appeals lowered Mark Frroku’s sentence from seven and a half years to six years this week. The former MP was sentenced last April for concealment of wealth, money laundering and illegal construction.
Frroku’s sentence was appealed by both his lawyer and the general prosecution. His lawyer asked for the innocence of his client concerning all charges.
The prosecution asked the Court of Appeals to also sentence Frroku for the murder of Aleksander Kurti in Belgium back in 1999 – for which Frroku was already found innocent in the past by the court.
The Court of Appeals did not change Frroku’s charges for concealment of wealth, money laundering and illegal construction, but only lowered his sentence. In addition, Frroku is prohibited from running or being selected for a public post for a four-year period.
Mark Frroku – and his brother Arben Frroku – led the Christian Democratic Party in the past. Before being sentenced, Frroku was held in house arrest for the alleged murder of Kurti, which supposedly happened as part of a clash over controlling a prostitution network in Brussels.
Last April, Frroku told the court he was innocent and was unjustly being kept imprisoned. He said that he had never seen even a picture of the person he was being accused to have murdered, while he added concerning his money laundering charges that his wealth is the result of hard work, not illegal activities.
As for the concealment of his wealth in context of the decriminalization law, under which all MPs must submit extensive background information to guarantee they have no criminal convictions in Albania and abroad, Frroku said it was the first time he filled the forms and that could have led to unintentional mistakes.
Meanwhile, Frroku’s brother Arben was also accused for the murder of former Commissioner Dritan Lamaj, but the first time he was found innocent on the ground there was lack of evidence.
When the Appeal of Serious Crime sentenced him with life imprisonment for the same accusation shortly after, it was too late and Frroku had already fled Albania during the time he was innocent.
The court’s decision that found both Frroku brothers innocent of their respective alleged murders was met with public anger in the past.
