Here’s how the villa owned by Belinda Balluku in collaboration with Viola Haxhiademi was discovered, how Maksim Hetemaj’s property disappeared from the investigations and the media.
The Special Prosecutors (SPAK) have confirmed that the villa on the coast is the product of a corrupt affair, which Belinda Balluku benefited from a 1 million euro tender when she held the position of director of Albcontrol, and in this case the registration was made using Igli Tara and one of her closest associates Joana Bush. In the official announcement, SPAK confirms that the pursuit of investigations with special methods, the collection of digital evidence and other evidence administered up to this stage of the preliminary investigations, result in data on new criminal facts against the defendant Belinda Balluku, for the criminal offenses “Passive corruption of persons exercising public functions”, and “Laundering of the proceeds of a criminal offense or criminal activity”.
The corruption case is related to the tender with the object “Reconstruction of the Albcontrol technological building for improving conditions”, with a limit fund of 88,651,633 (eighty-eight million six hundred and fifty-one thousand six hundred and thirty-three) lek, as well as the “Additional contract for the ‘Reconstruction of the Albcontrol technological building for improving conditions’”, with a value of 14,161,814 (fourteen million one hundred and sixty-one thousand eight hundred and fourteen) lek excluding VAT. In connection with this procedure, it results that the citizen Belinda Balluku, in the capacity of the head of the contracting authority “Albcontrol” sh.a, with the duty of General Director, in cooperation with the citizen Evis Berberi, with the duty of Head of the Procurement Sector, as well as the members of the Procurement Unit, citizens SP, EN and AM, have predetermined the winner of this tender.
These actions are related to the phase of project preparation and procedure development, in defining the criteria and approving the tender documents, by predetermining and creating unfair advantages and privileges for the winning company of the procurement procedure, the economic operator “Eurocol” sh.pk. The favoring of the winning company continued even at the moment of concluding the contract, by offering an immediate prepayment in the amount of 50% of the contract, as well as during the implementation of the contract and its addendum. The investigation results that citizen Belinda Balluku, due to her public function as General Director of Albcontrol sh.a, in exchange for favoring the company “Eurocol” sh.pk in the aforementioned procedure, has requested and received an irregular benefit, which, referring to the order contract, is in the amount of 145,000 (one hundred and forty-five thousand) euros, consisting of real estate, specifically the villa with no. F6, in the “White Rocks” tourist resort, Gjilekë, Dhërmi, Himarë Municipality, Vlorë District, with the developer “Eurocol” sh.pk. The irregular benefit was sought during the development of this procurement procedure, where it results that at that time the company “Eurocol” sh.pk had applied for and was provided with the Complex Development Permit no. 2385/1 prot., dated 27.3.2015, approved by the Decision of the National Territorial Council no. 7, dated 7.3.2014, “On the approval of the complex development permit for the tourist resort in the village of Gjilekë, Dhërmi, Himarë Municipality, Vlorë District”.
Village
So, as SPAK emphasizes, there is new evidence confirming that Belinda Balluku, despite the award of this tender worth over 1 million euros, has requested the villa on the coast as a bribe. Not only corruption, but SPAK accuses the former/deputy prime minister of Money Laundering, by hiding and registering in the name of other persons the benefits of corruption. The investigations have also evidenced the use of legal actions suspected of being fictitious, with the aim of hiding the origin and real ownership of the property. The property placed under “preventive seizure” consists of a “Two-story individual villa type Begonia with No. F6, the fenced plot available to the villa is no less than 300 m2. Villa F6, within this plot, has an area of 103m2 (ground floor 54 m2 and first floor above ground 49 m2). Villa F6 also has a 34m2 veranda. The parking lot is located within the plot area.
[Referring to the contract of assignment with no. 1059 rep, no. 650 col, dated 05.12.2018] As confirmed by the contract of assignment, immediately after the appointment of Belinda Balluku as Minister of Infrastructure and Energy, she would be rewarded and rested in the villa secured from corruption, as an associate of Edi Rama. Following the investigations conducted within the framework of criminal proceedings no. 136/2025, following the request submitted by the Special Prosecution, the Special Court of First Instance, with decision no. 412, dated 3.6.2026, has imposed the property insurance measure “preventive sequestration” on the immovable property, indirectly owned by the citizen Belinda Balluku, located in the tourist resort “White Rocks”, Gjilekë, Dhërmi, Himarë Municipality.
To hide this wealth, a product of corruption, Belinda Balluku has used one of her closest people for many years, former footballer Igli Tare. And together with him, SPAK also accuses Balluku’s former chief of staff, Joana Bushi, one of the key figures in the career and affairs of the former. Deputy Prime Minister. It turns out that citizen Belinda Balluku has carried out the fictitious act of the order contract no. 1059, dated 5.12.2018, concluded between citizen Igli Tare and the owner of the company “Eurocol” sh.pk, citizen Pandeli Carapuli. Illegal actions in the form of laundering the proceeds of crime continued by citizens Belinda Balluku, Igli Tare and Jona Bushi, carrying out another fictitious action, that of the rental contract (hand contract), dated 25.5.2022, and the amendment to this contract, dated 26.4.2024.
The villa of Balluk’s subordinate and the mystery of Maksim Hetemaj’s property
Villa no. F6 is located in one of the elite areas of Dhërmi. While adjacent to Balluku’s villa, sources indicate that it is suspected that it is also the villa of her subordinate, Viola Haxhiademi, who is the Secretary General of the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, as well as the other villa of Maksim Hetemaj, former director of Albcontrol, now the Executive Director of the Civil Aviation Authority. Regarding the latter, investigations and the media have been silent since no one has mentioned Hetemaj’s property, suspected of being acquired through corruption as part of the “Balluku gang”.
INVESTIGATIONS
On the other hand, the signal that is believed to have come to SPAK from a foreign embassy operating in Albania, explained that the luxury villa had been donated to Belinda Balluku by businessman Pandeli Carapuli. But the in-depth investigation carried out during these months has revealed the maneuvers used by the senior official, Belinda Balluku. While Carapuli’s company has won the two tenders, financial payments have also begun to flow from “Albcontrol” to the company “Eurocol”. However, unable to obtain the luxury villa in her name or that of her close family members, Belinda Balluku, at that time director, has chosen a well-known figure in Albanian and Italian sports. The value of this order contract signed between Tare and Carapuli at that time was 145 thousand euros. Verifications carried out by SPAK have revealed that Igli Tare has paid through a Second Level bank in Albania, the amount of 70 thousand euros. While the remaining part, the difference of 75 thousand euros, there is no trace of how it was paid, as there is no bank transaction.
The SPAK investigation has proven that Tare did not pay the 70 thousand euros himself, but authorized his brother, Agron Tare, with a power of attorney, to carry out the 70 thousand euro transaction in the bank. SPAK claims that Tare has never been and has not lived in the luxury villa in Gjileka. And this fact is supported by the investigation group on the statements of the employees of the complex, the villa’s maintenance staff, who indicate that they have never seen Igli Tare in that property. According to the employee, Belinda Balluku used to come to this property and they have created the belief that the villa belonged to this official. Also, Igli Tare did not deal with the furnishing and decoration of this luxury villa at all, since Belinda Balluku and her family members dealt with such a thing themselves.
Such a fact, according to the SPAK file, has been proven by the finding of written communications, voice messages and photos on the phones of the persons under investigation, where it is clearly proven that the furnishing was followed by Balluku and her friendly circle. Meanwhile, when 3 years and 5 months had passed since the signing of the order contract with Carapuli and when Igli Tare had never gone to see the luxurious villa he had purchased, surprisingly he signed a contract in person, not in front of a notary, where he agreed to rent the property, villa F-6, to citizen Joana Bushi. It is learned that SPAK has not found any payment mandates or bank transactions carried out by Joana Bushi towards the bank accounts of the former footballer, Igli Tare. It is alleged that the payments were made informally. But despite the fact that legally the property is in the name of Igli Tare and the latter has never left, but has rented it to Joana Bush, the luxurious villa is enjoyed by Belinda Balluku and her family. Therefore, SPAK prosecutors, Dritan Prençi and Dorina Bejko, decided on June 3, 2026 to seize this villa, as proven to belong to Belinda Balluku.