TIRANA, Dec. 22 – The Independent Qualification Commission decided on Friday to oust Agron Vavla, head of the Berat Court and Admir Belishta, head of the Korca Court.
Vavla, whose career in the judiciary was investigated by the IQC composed by Firde Shuli, Roland Ilia and Etledia Ciftja, failed to justify his declared legal source of wealth.
He was investigated by the IQC only on his accumulated wealth, and investigations revealed discrepancies between his statements and the values ”‹”‹in the contracts of owned properties.
The IQC found problems with a 57,1 square meter apartment bought in Berat’s Housing Office. There was also a notable difference between what Vavla had declared and the actual price of a 107 square meter apartment owned by him in Tirana. The IQC report found the declared price is not correct, as Ciftja clarified Vavla said he bought the apartment for 383 euros per square meter instead of the real price of 110 Albanian lek per square meter.
The IQC also found problems with a 30,000 euro loan Vavla said he’d borrowed from a relative of his wife who had lived and worked in Italy. According to the commission, this justification lacks proper documentation.
There were also issues found with the purchase of a car in Germany and the purchase of bonds worth 2,9 million ALL, which was said to have no legal source of income.
Vavla rejected the commission’s findings, telling the commission he has children to feed and rejecting the decision based on the wealth criterion and arguing there are not enough facts to support the IQC’s conclusion.
Vavla was appointed as a judge in 1995. Much of his career he worked as a judge at the Berat Court, while in 2014 he was appointed head of court.
Meanwhile, concerning Belishta, the IQC highlighted he also could not legally justify the source of his wealth, as well as had established links with untrustworthy contacts.
Belishta did not initially oppose the decision taken by the IQC, led by Olsi Komici, Lulzim Hamitaj and Genta Tafa, but he denied the accusations during Wednesday’s hearing.
He was elected to undergo the vetting process under as head of Korca’s court under the justice reform in the beginning of this year and was called to the hearing only in December.
Belishta started his career in the justice system in 2003, as a Korà§a judge. In 2007, he was appointed chairman of this court – a position he still holds today. In addition to working as a judge, Belishta has been engaged in teaching, but also as an expert in international organizations in the country working on legal issues.
The IQC concluded that Belishta had “filed incorrect statements, had no legitimate financial resources, had concealed wealth and had made false statements.”
The report’s only positive remark was that Belishta had no conflict of interest.
Meanwhile, Belishta claimed his wealth was justifiable and self-earned since he became independent in 2004.
