Former mayor of Pristina, Shpend Ahmeti, has stated in the Basic Court in Pristina that the over 172 thousand euros that he is accused of not declaring do not have an illegal origin, but were financial assistance from his family. Ahmeti, who is facing charges of not declaring his assets, said that the money was given by his family to cover expenses, as his wife was unemployed at the time. He added that he had not declared it, as he did not think it was a legal obligation, but had deposited it in the bank for transparency.
"At worst, for me it is a technical error," Ahmeti declared, emphasizing that there was never any intention to hide the assets. He also said that during the years 2018-2022 he was selected several times for control by the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption and that he had not received any remarks or requests to correct the asset declarations.
On the other hand, special prosecutor Dren Paca requested that Ahmeti be found guilty and sentenced to 18 months in prison, a 5,000 euro fine, and the confiscation of 172,600 euros or assets of equivalent value. According to the Prosecution, Ahmeti has not declared 118,200 euros deposited in his personal account, as well as 54,400 euros deposited in his mother's bank accounts. In total, the amount of undeclared funds amounts to 172,600 euros.
The defense opposed the indictment, arguing that the money did not have a criminal origin, there was no attempt to hide it, and that, at worst, Ahmeti's actions could be considered a misdemeanor rather than a criminal offense.
Shpend Ahmeti has pleaded not guilty. The indictment against him was filed on December 23, 2025 by the Special Prosecution of the Republic of Kosovo. According to the prosecution, during the time he headed the Municipality of Pristina, from 2018 to 2022, Ahmeti had a legal obligation to fully and accurately declare his assets, income, gifts, property benefits and financial obligations.
The prosecution alleges that, when submitting annual tax returns to the Anti-Corruption Agency, he submitted incorrect data, not including all the income he was required to report. According to the indictment, Ahmeti failed to declare cash deposits totaling 118,200 euros, which he had personally made into his bank account, both directly and through ATMs.
The prosecution also claims that he did not report 54 thousand 400 euros deposited in his mother's bank accounts, with the initials LA. In total, the amount of funds that, according to the indictment, were not declared reaches 172 thousand 600 euros. For these actions, Ahmeti is accused of the criminal offense of "Failure to report or false reporting of assets, income, gifts, other material benefits or financial obligations", according to Article 430/2 in conjunction with Article 77 of the Criminal Code of Kosovo.
