Turkish court annuls Aldo Bares’s extradition

ANKARA, Turkey, March 12 – A Turkish appeals court annulled a lower court’s decision to extradite Aldo Bare to Albania, considered a suspected leader of one of Albania’s most notorious crime gangs. It ordered a new trial. Alfred Shkurti, or Aldo Bare, was arrested in Turkey in March 2006 and has been in jail since then pending trial. The appeals court on Feb. 7 annulled the extradition decision on technical grounds and ordered a new trial, Shkurti’s lawyer Cemil Can said. No trial date has been set, Can said.
Albanian prosecutors say Shkurti, who also goes by the name Aldo Bare, was responsible for more than 15 murders and several hijackings, as well as the destruction of property and the desecration graves. The gang Shkurti allegedly led operated out of Albania, Turkey, Bulgaria, Macedonia and Romania, trafficking drugs to Western Europe, according to Albanian Interior Ministry. He is believed to have been in hiding in Turkey in recent years. Shkurti’s lawyer said the accusations against his client were politically motivated and fabricated by the Albanian government. Shkurti has requested political asylum in Turkey.