TIRANA, Aug. 31, 2022 – Albania’s national police chief has been sacked over “not achieving objectives,” following a summer that saw a string of high-profile crimes and a high number of victims.
Following a government meeting on Wednesday morning, Interior Minister Bledi Cuci said General Police Director Gledis Nano had been removed from office, which will be temporarily filled by Deputy Police Director Tonin Vocaj.
Appointed only in October last year, Director Nano’s tenure as Albania’s top police officer was among the shortest in recent times. He was also the youngest officer to hold the position in recent times.
Albania has been recently plagued by deadly violence and targeted killings among rival criminal groups. Moreover, several incidents of some family violence have left a high number of victims.
Most notably for Nano’s tenure; however, was the horrid death of a child in a Himara beach, after she was hit by a speedboat driven by an off-duty police commissioner who had been reinstated after prior legal issues. The incident caused massive popular uproar and protests that called for voth Nano and Cuci to resign.
Cuci told reporters after the government meeting that “the change of management through the dismissal of the General Police Director will bring efficiency in order to have a stronger reaction to the fight against crime.”
A couple of media outlets had already reported Nano’s sacking earlier this week, but it only became official at the Wednesday government meeting.
Nano had come through the ranks and had taken special courses in the United States, with the U.S. Embassy issuing a statement on Wednesday expressing appreciation for his work, calling Nano “a strong partner to the United States” in a statement on Twitter.
In addition to the police chief, two deputy ministers were also dismissed. Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Ardi Veliu and Deputy Minister of Defense Dallendyshe Bici will no longer serve in their previous roles but might be transferred to other state duties, officials said.
