In a press statement on Friday, the General Directorate of Prisons clarified that Mayor Veliaj had been acquitted in three separate cases previously and that, under the Albanian law, he is legally considered not convicted.

The response to SPAK request regarding Veliaj’s judicial background follows controversy over judicial records that mistakenly listed him as “convicted.”

“After verifications in the Judicial Records, Veliaj turns out to be legally not convicted after three acquittals,” Prison Directorate said, adding that the electronic judicial certificate issued in Veliaj’s case automatically displayed the label “convicted” due to past court proceedings, even though those rulings resulted in acquittals.

Earlier today, SPAK said it had sought further clarification to ensure accuracy of the case documents, underlining that “prosecutors have not referred to his judicial records in their request to decide restricting personal security measure at court.”

/a.f/r.e/u.sh/