Two years after the murder of 42-year-old Egli Proga, the Prosecutor’s Office at the Korça Court has completed the investigations and sent the criminal file against the five people involved in this case for trial.
At the conclusion of the investigation, the prosecution has filed charges of “intentional murder, committed in collaboration” against Denis Meçe and Leonidha Guçe. Meanwhile, Arjan Manellari, Voltan Shkulaku and Andi Shkulaku are accused of failing to report the crime, as well as of committing acts that impede the discovery of the truth, criminal offenses committed in collaboration.
For the two main defendants, the Korça Court has imposed the security measure “house arrest”, while the other three defendants continue to be investigated under the measure “compulsory appearance”.
According to the forensic medical examination report, Egli Proga lost his life as a result of a cerebral hemorrhage caused by a punch to the head. To support the charge, the Prosecution relied not only on the forensic medical examination, but also on the testimonies of the persons questioned during the investigation, the footage of the security cameras of businesses near the scene of the incident, as well as other evidence administered during the investigative process.
The event occurred on the evening of August 10, 2024 in the city of Pogradec and caused strong reactions in public opinion. Initially, the case was investigated with another criminal qualification, but then, after the administration of new evidence and forensic expertise, the charge was reclassified to “intentional murder”.
Egli Proga’s family members have held protests over the past two years and have continuously demanded a full investigation into the incident, claiming that responsibility should not be limited to the suspected perpetrators, but that the way in which institutions, especially local police structures, acted in the first hours after the crime should also be investigated.
With the completion of the preliminary investigations and the submission of the file to the court, the trial is expected to begin in the coming weeks, where the evidence collected by the prosecution and the claims of the parties will be reviewed.