TIRANA, Feb. 9 – The mayor of Albania’s port city of Vlora has been freed due to health problems after he was arrested for a second time on charges of corruption relating to illegal construction, in case that has received national attention. A court had cleared him last year in a previous case.
Shpetim Gjika, a senior official in the governing Socialist Party and mayor of Vlore, 140 kilometers southwest of Tirana, was arrested Friday last week along with a municipal official and construction company manager.
A public prosecutor’s office said they were arrested on charges of abuse of office, falsifying documents and illegal construction.
Two days later the court decided he should be freed on bail and report to the prosecutor’s office on a regular basis. The decision was forced after Gjika’s heart trouble, and transfer to hospital.
From Vlora he was transported to a private hospital in capital Tirana for a more professional treatment. It was there where the judge and the
prosecutor went to decide on his release.
The 52-year-old Gjika was cleared on similar charges last year. That urged many in the local media to question his arrest at a time when there are many other mayors around the country that have been publicly accused of similar deeds.
Critics say Gjika is being made an example in the fight against corruption because he comes from the ruling Socialist Party.
Fighting corruption remains a top priority for Albania, which has been a NATO member since 2009 and was granted candidate status from the European Union last year.
