The trial of Bedri Shabani and Muharrem Qerimi has restarted, with both defendants once again pleading not guilty to the espionage charges against them.
Presiding judge Rrahman Beqiri announced that the trial would begin anew because Judge Vesel Ismajli is approaching retirement and will be replaced by Judge Donika Shala-Abdyli. The case was previously heard by the same judicial panel.
After confirming that the indictment had been read, both defendants entered their not-guilty pleas. The hearing continued with opening statements from prosecutor Bekim Kodraliu, the defendants and their defence lawyers.
The Special Prosecution of the Republic of Kosovo filed the indictment on February 19, 2025, accusing Shabani and Qerimi of collecting and transmitting information and documents to Serbia’s Security Intelligence Agency (BIA).
According to the indictment, the information allegedly concerned the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), its commanders and members, the Kosovo Police, the Kosovo Intelligence Agency (AKI), the Police Inspectorate of Kosovo and specific events and locations, including the Recak massacre.
The prosecution alleges that the defendants helped the Serbian intelligence agency develop a false narrative linking the KLA military hospital in Mollopolc, Shtime, to the so-called “Yellow House” and alleged organ trafficking, while also seeking to cast doubt on the truth about the Recak massacre. The indictment further alleges that the activities were intended to provoke a wider interethnic conflict in Kosovo.
Shabani is accused of espionage under Article 124, paragraph 3, of Kosovo’s Criminal Code. According to the indictment, he allegedly transmitted information to senior BIA official Sërgjan Rosiç and Bogoljub Janičević, a former Serbian police commander in the Ferizaj region.
Qerimi faces the same espionage charge. Prosecutors allege that, from 2012 until his arrest on June 5, 2024, he collected and transmitted information concerning former KLA members, Kosovo security institutions and witnesses in cases before the Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague.
He is also charged with unauthorised possession of weapons after police allegedly found a pistol, ammunition and magazines during a search conducted on June 5, 2024.
Previous hearings in the case, including those held on January 28 and 29 and April 30, took place behind closed doors.
The charges remain allegations, and both defendants have pleaded not guilty. The case will proceed through the judicial process, where the prosecution must establish the allegations against them.
