Earthquake Investigations Begin

Earthquake Investigations Begin

Three days after the devastating November 26 earthquake that left 51 dead, thousands injured and untold material damage, prosecutors in the two cities decided to launch an investigation.

In a statement, the central body of the prosecution clarifies that these are the offenses of "Unlawful construction" and "Abuse of office".

The main suspicions in Durrës are that the aftermath of the earthquake came as a result of illegal constructions and failure by executing engineers and responsible persons.

Regular failure to perform duties by civil servants charged with overseeing these constructions is also suspected as cause.

Tirana Prosecution has also launched an investigation into allegations of "Abuse of duty" and "Providing assistance for illegal construction".

An investigative team is verifying bodies that have approved building permits and whether they have been properly implemented by developers. Prosecution has requested preliminary information from the Municipality of Tirana on damaged and classified dwellings not in appropriate housing conditions.

In Kruja the prosecution did not register the proceedings, but on the other hand all possible evidence was obtained on the ground.

Whereas in Kavaja preliminary verifications were carried out in 4 old buildings that were badly damaged, but no criminal proceedings have been initiated.

EMISIONET