Appeal confirms the liberation act to Paul Lekat and others

Pal Lekaj was accused of misusing the official position, for the time being at the helm of this municipality. Former Isufi official and municipal official Rama were also charged with misuse of office, while subsidies were accused by businessman Veli Hajdaraga, reports “Justice Votition”.

Through a media communiqué from Appeals, it is said that the foundation's liberation act, compiled on March 10, 2022.

“Under the Act of Special Department of Appeals Court, has been rejected by the Special Prosecutor of the Republic of Kosovo, so the Constitutional Court Act in Gjakova has been confirmed PKR.r.110/21 of the 10,03.2022 date, on which they were acquitted, accused G.R., due to the criminal offence of using the official position or authority from Article 422 pars. 1 connected to par. 2 of the KPRK, the accused P.L. and I.I., due to criminal activity in co-ordination and continuation Misuse of official position or authority by Article 422 pars. 1 connected to par. 2 linked to Article 31 and 81 of KPRK, and the accused V.H. Because of the criminal offence related to ongoing subsidies by KPRK's Article 262,”, the announcement said.

In the argument of the verdict, Appeals stresses that the finding of the first-instance court is fair and that the amended act does not contain essential violations of the penal procedure provisions.

“The Court of Appeals with the APS act.n.17/2022 date 01.08.2022 has rejected the Special Prosecution of the Republic of Kosovo, arguing that the findings of the first-instance court are right, and the punishment Act does not contain substantial violations of the penal procedure provisions” away.

And it is also said that in the concrete case, the actual situation has been proved right and completely, resulting in the actions of the accused not met the elements of criminal acts that were imposed on them.

So the College of the Court of Appeals has found that no criminal law was violated and that legal provisions were enforced.

Otherwise, in February 2021, the Constitutional Court in Gjakova had sentenced Lekay to 1 year and 6 months in prison on bail. The accused Rama had sentenced him to 1 year in prison on bail, while accused Isufi was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison on bail. They had also been pronounced complete punishment, involving the ban on public administration operations or on public services for two years.

While, against accused Veli Hajdaraga for subsidies fraud and avoidance was pronounced a unique penalty of fines of 8 thousand euros, as well as a one-year prison sentence. Also, it was imposed on behalf of the caused damage to ATK compensates for the total amount of 24 thousand and 718 euros and 59 cents.

The four accused had been charged with making up for the Gjakova municipality to compensate for the damage in the amount of 69 thousand and 786 euros.

However, Apel has broken the court's first court judgment and turned the case into retrial.

The appeal had left only part of the prison sentence for tax evasion for accused Veli Hajdaraga, proving his sentence of 3 thousand euros in fines and one year in prison on bail, and obliged him to compensate for the damage caused. ATK's.

The act of Appeals said there is uncertainty about when the alleged criminal acts were committed on the part of former head of the Gjakova municipality, Pal Lekaj, former municipal officials, Gani Rama and Ismet Isufi and accused Veli Hajdaraga.

In August 2019, the subject of the accused Gani Rama was joined by Paul Lekaj and others after the special prosecutor, Father and Dema proposal that these two subjects join the argument that these issues are the same and related.

This is the third time the case against the accused Rama turned into retrial, since the Constitutional Court in Gjakova had twice acquitted him of the prosecution.

The Constitutional Court in Gjakova on February 13th 2017 had acquitted the accused Rama, arguing that he has failed to prove that he has committed the criminal act for which he is charged.

However, following the Kosovo Special Prosecutor's complaint, the Court of Appeals had turned the case against accused Rama into retrial.

After his retrial, the Constitutional Court in Gjakova, with the act of February 9, 2018, had again cleared the accused Rama, arguing that he had failed to prove that he committed the criminal act for which he was charged.

However, then, the Court of Appeals on November 1, 2018, has turned the case back into retrial, thus confirming the SPRK's complaint.

Under the ruling of the Court of Appeals, the Constitutional Court Act in Gjakova was involved in essential violations of criminal procedure provisions.

Apelt is said to have strongly based the first degree court on the financial expert's opinion, but according to Appeals, the expert has not given clear and concrete opinion about the position he held and the competencies that the accused Rama has exercised.

According to the Special Prosecutor's Act of the Republic of Kosovo, founded on May 26, 2016, Gani Rama was charged with criminal activity “the misuse of official position or authority”.

The indictment says that during the 2008 period of 2012, Gani Rama, in the quality of the official, financial person in the Gjakova municipality, with the aim of gaining wealth for himself or for the other person, or to cause damage to the other person, had allowed the pardoning and approval of monetary means.

According to the indictment, this was about payments to business “DPT Union-VL”, owner of Veli Hajdaraga, for the distribution of subsidies without any procedures, no contracts, and no regular bills.

According to the prosecution, the misused amount was supposed to be 218 thousand and 956 euros and 67 cents.

Meanwhile, the Kosovo Special Prosecutor's Prosecution of Paul Lekaj and others had filed it on April 10, 2016.

Before the indictment was partially dismissed, Paul Lekaj along with Ismet Isufin, Easter Syla, Bekim Syla, Teuta Mayzin and Dafina Thacin were accused of acting as officers of the Gjakova municipality have misused their official positions during the distribution of subsidies.

Paul Lekaj and Ismet Isufi were charged that during the 2008-2014 period, acting in the quality of official persons, the first in the quality of Gjakova municipality chairman, while the second as director of the Directorate for Agriculture, have distributed subsidies through the company “U n NION-VL”, contrary to the Public Finance Management Law.

The decisions issued by the defendant Paul Lekaj cover only the amount of 235.400 euros, while other decisions do not have any kind of legal grounds amounting to the amount of 631.671.82 euros”, said among other things in the indictment.

The charge is said to have been authorised by the accused without supervision if the payments were made to farmers and having no contract with the company “U n NION-VL” with c. 40% of the over three thousand farmers have not even accepted payments that have been authorized to them.

Always according to the indictment, the accused has also passed legal competencies, because in addition to the funding for subsidies, those for subsidies have used other budgetary lines of the Gjakova municipality, causing it a possible damage of up to 250 thousand euros.

While defendants Pask Syla, Bekim Syla, Teuta Mayzini and Dafina Thaqi were charged with being in the quality of the chairmans and commission members for monitoring the distribution of subsidies, have compiled reports that if distribution on the subject has been done properly, though about 40% of the applicants have refused subsidies.

The six defendants are charged with these actions, at different times between 2008 and 2014, have consistently committed criminal acts of embezzlement during the exercise of office and misuse of official office or authority.

In this case, Veli Hajdaraga, who, according to the prosecution body, during the 2008-2015 period, has provided incorrect information that if all the subsidies applicants have accepted subsidies and that he has allowed farmers on the list to receive subsidies instead, to take on persons who had no right.

The accused Hajdaraga, in addition to the criminal act of subsidies fraud, was also charged with avoiding taxes of around 35 thousand euros because, according to the prosecution, he, with the intent to avoid paying taxes, has declared less income than those in reality for his company, “U n NION-VL”

The Special Prosecutor in the indictment has indicated that the number of farmers who had to be interviewed is over three thousand, so with a number of respondents it has been won the trend that 40% of the subsidies beneficiaries have not accepted them at all.

So the exact amount of damage caused by the farmers interviewed is, according to the indictment, about 70 thousand euros.

By contrast, the Court of Appeals, in March 2019, had enacted the Constitutional Court Act in Gjakova to take over on January 10, 2019, which had confirmed the indictment filed by the Special Prosecutor of the Republic of Kosovo (PSKR), with which the indictment, Lekaj and Isufi are accused of misusing the official position, while Hajdaraga for fraud in subsidies and tax evasion.

Even in November 2018, the Court of Appeals had ruled on the defenders ' complaints in this case, restoring the case to Lekaj and others in the criminal work of abuse of office, in which the Constitutional Court in Gjakova had confirmed the indictment.

According to Apel's assessment, the first-instance court has not provided sufficient reason when it confirmed the criminal offence of the position against the accused and refused their defenders' complaints.

As for the other work of malpractice, for which the Foundation had also thrown this point of act, Apel had confirmed the same.

Former head of the Gjakova municipality Paul Lekaj and others had been declared innocent of all points of indictment at the initial review hearing held on 31 May 2018.