The United States of America has extradited to Albania Sokol Hoxha, the man accused of a triple murder, who has evaded justice for about 30 years.
Hoxha, arrested a few months ago in the US, will now face Albanian justice for one of the most serious criminal events of 1997, the murder of two brothers Ilirjan and Hektor Banaj in Patos.
The incident occurred on March 30, 1997, during a turbulent period for the country, and the conflict that led to the murder began after an argument over a car cassette player.
According to the file available to Top Channel journalist Anila Hoxha, it turns out that Ilirjan Banaj had a clash with Ervin Sulollari over a cassette player that the latter had given him and then ended up with another person. Sokol Hoxha was also present in this debate, and intervened by hitting both people with his palm.
After the conflict, Ilirjan Banaj left and went to his apartment. Later, he went out in his vehicle and, according to the file, fired a gun into the air on a street in the city of Patos.
This action caused Dritan Selimi (Sokol Hoxha’s nephew), who according to the investigation had learned about the incident, to inform Sokol. According to the trial documents, the two armed themselves with a pistol and an automatic rifle and went in search of Ilirjan Banaj.
In the fruit and vegetable market area near the bus station in Patos, two brothers Ilirjan and Hektor Banaj were confronted by the unlicensed SUV in which Sokol Hoxha, Dritan Selimi and Ervin Sulollari were traveling.
According to the evidence in the file, after a brief argument, Sokol Hoxha pulled out his gun and shot Ilirjan Banaj. When Hektor got out of the car to stop the attack on his brother, he was also shot.
The file states that Dritan Selimi used an automatic rifle against Hektor Banaj, while Sokol Hoxha also shot at him. After the attack, the two perpetrators fled the scene in their vehicle.
An eyewitness cited in the file, Leonard Rrapaj, stated that he saw the two people leave the scene in an SUV without license plates, while carrying firearms.
Forensic examinations have documented the serious consequences of the attack. According to the file, 11 gunshot wounds were found on Ilirjan Banaj’s body, while 4 serious wounds were found on Hektor Banaj, with damage to vital organs.
The court concluded that Sokol Hoxha and Dritan Selimi committed the murder in collaboration, finding them guilty of the murder of the two brothers.
The file emphasizes that the importance of the crime is aggravated by the manner of commission, the use of weapons, and the fact that the perpetrators fled the scene and evaded justice for years.
In addition to the Banaj brothers’ murder case, Sokol Hoxha has also been sentenced to life imprisonment in Belgium for the murder of Albanian citizen Brunilda Dervishi. Following his arrest in the US, Albanian authorities have initiated communications with the Belgian side for the transfer of the case.
Meanwhile, British authorities have revoked the British passport that Hoxha had obtained around 2000 under the identity Hysen Gashi, a name under which he later entered the US. /TCH