Trial against Laert Haxhiu, victims' families testify

2026-07-28 14:48:00, Aktualitet CNA

The criminal trial against Laert Haxhiu continued this Tuesday at the Special Court with the testimonies of the victims' families.

The first to be questioned was Xhuliano Xhaferraj, Fridman Xhaferraj's brother. He said that at the time of his brother's murder, he was serving a prison sentence and only learned about the incident after being escorted by the police after his release.

In his testimony, Xhaferraj said that Fridman had planned to leave for Italy and described the last movements he had made before losing his life. He also touched on the rumors that, according to him, were circulating in Lushnja after the crime, which mentioned the name of Laert Haxhiu as the person who could have given the order for the murder.

"I was in prison when my brother was killed. They took me to the police station and questioned me because they didn't recognize my brother because he had been found in the water. I had just finished my sentence. When I got out, I went to my mother-in-law's house because my daughter-in-law was there. I found police officers who were checking. They accompanied me. They told me that he had been found in the reservoir in Drenova. When I spoke to my brother once, when I was in prison, he told me that he was going abroad, to Italy. Those guys had given my other brother, the younger one, a ticket and sent him to Greece. Lul Spahiu had taken him to Elbasan. There they gave him a ticket and then Lul Spahiu and Kristi Bixheku took Fridman. The younger brother returned to Lushnje and two days later he went to Greece. Luli and Bixheku had told him that they would go to Greece with Fridman and that they would pick him up from Korça. I asked Laert Haxhiu's father if "He knew something. In Lushnje, it was said that his brother had been with Laertes and that the order for the murder was given by him, because he had spoken. I'm not sure, but that's what was said. Laertes' father told me that his son had nothing to do with this event," he said.

However, the witness explained to the jury that he himself does not share this belief. He stated that he had known Laert Haxhiu for years due to family ties and that he did not believe that he was responsible for the murder of his brother.

"I know Laert Haxhiu. My father and his father, Qamili, are close friends. I also know his mother. None of his family members have visited me in prison. I am not at all the one who made Laert do this. I have also told his father that I do not believe he did anything. Laert loved Fridman, he kept him close," he said.

Then, Sami Bushaliu testified in the courtroom, recalling the assassination attempt on Albi Bashaliu, which took place in late 2021 in Gjoçaj, Peqin. He confessed that he had seen a suspicious vehicle parked near his bar and a few moments later heard gunshots. According to him, the perpetrator approached the victim, shot him and then forced him inside the bar. Bushaliu added that another person set the victim's vehicle on fire before the perpetrators left the scene.

The witness also recalled that the Bashaliu family had been hit by another murder earlier, referring to the execution of Albi Bashaliu's brother. The hearing focused on hearing witnesses and administering evidence, while the trial against Laert Haxhiu is expected to continue with other evidence in future hearings.

"3-4 years ago, a murder took place in front of my bar. It was 2-3 days before New Year's. My bar is in front of my house. It was a rainy morning. A car with dark windows had arrived and was parked at the foot of the courtyard. It seemed to me that it was a white Audi with black windows. The woman told me that it was a car. I thought it belonged to the neighbor. I don't have a camera. I saw it once and went inside. Albi Bashaliu came to drink coffee. Someone got out of the car. He spoke to Bashaliu. He turned his head and then the sound of gunfire was heard. He was a thin, tall guy. He shot once or twice. Those who were in the bar were also shocked. I went there. The person with the pistol in his hand told me: "Come inside." I went inside. Then he took Bashaliu's keys from his pocket. While the one who was waiting for him in the car, he poured gasoline on the car and set it on fire. The state then came and did its job. "He had his brother killed earlier. They called him Leonard. He stayed in Italy longer. He was killed in another village. About time, something before the year was over. One of our villagers killed him, one Albert Xhahysa, I don't know," he said./ CNA