President of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, Ekaterina Trendafilova, has clarified that the pre-trial detention of the accused in the “Thaçi and others” case has been continuously justified by the court, contrary to claims that they’ve been held for nearly two and a half years without trial.
In an interview for RTK, Trendafilova emphasized that the accused were not kept without judicial process, stating: “It is inaccurate to say that the accused have been held without trial. Since their arrest, the case has been in a key preparatory phase, known as the pre-trial phase, which is an integral part of the legal process.”
She explained that pre-trial detention is legally permitted when there are strong reasons to continue it, such as risk of flight, risk of witness tampering, or risk of committing further crimes. Trendafilova underlined that while court hearings weren’t yet public, legal proceedings continued behind the scenes through document preparation, submissions, and procedural decisions.
“Every two months, the court has issued reasoned decisions justifying continued detention,” she said.
As for the end of the trial, Trendafilova noted it is too early to predict when the final verdict will be issued: “The defense teams have announced they will file a joint motion to dismiss the charges. We must wait for the Trial Panel’s decision on that motion.”
Should the charges remain, the next steps include the Victims’ Counsel presenting their case, expected to take approximately one week, followed by the Defense Teams preparing and presenting their arguments. Only then will the judges begin deliberations on the verdict.
She concluded that the timeline will largely depend on how long the defense needs to present its case and what deadlines the court sets for the upcoming phases.
