Two Veliaj "soldiers" at the head of the Prisons of the Albanian Prison Service / Gogu tries to justify the appointments in Korça

2026-04-17 18:37:00, Aktualitet CNA

Shortly after the appointment of Adriatik Kupi as head of Prisons, Minister Toni Gogu also formalized the appointment of Gentjan Myrtos as head of the Prison Service, thus filling the new "dome" of the penitentiary system with people known to be loyal to Mayor Erion Veliaj.

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This Friday, Justice Minister Toni Gogu was in Korça, where he was asked by CNA how it is possible that the Director General of Prisons and the head of the Albanian Prison Service are supporters of Erion Veliaj and whether this is a strategy to save the mayor from the 13 charges against him.

The minister, in an attempt to defend his choices, chose standard rhetoric by declaring that prison leaders and he himself are only servants of the law and citizens, whether they are inside or outside the institutions.

"Prison directors, but also I, together with them, are only servants of the law. And we are servants of the entire legal framework in force and of the legal order in Albania, even in the service of all citizens of Albania, both those who are outside the service of executing criminal decisions, but also those who are serving them within the institutions," declared Gogu.

We recall that Adriatik Kupi, appointed on April 1, is known as a loyal "soldier" of Veliaj and former administrator of Petrela.

Likewise, the recent appointment of Myrtos to head the SCIB, who previously held the position of head of the Vaqarr Administrative Unit, closes the security circle, placing another Veliaj supporter in charge of controlling legality within prisons.

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These appointments are seen as a protective chain that turns the system into a shield for people in power, like Veliaj.

The question that remains after the minister's visit to Korça is which citizens are really being served, those who are waiting for justice for the theft of millions of euros, or Erion Veliaj, whose close friends are being placed in key positions in the system?/ CNA