Two police officers have been suspended from duty after the murder of 20-year-old Portuguese Luis Miguel Varela Mendes in Ksamil. They are Miosid Matushaj, an employee of the Border and Migration Police structures in Gjirokastra, and Romeo Shehu, an employee of the Gjirokastra Municipal Police. According to the investigation, both were in the “Principote” bar at the moment when the conflict began, which later ended with the murder of the tourist. They had gone to the bar in the role of bodyguards, while on duty they were supposed to guarantee security in the premises of the bar. According to the Police, during the conflict they did not intervene to prevent the escalation of the situation. After the event, they also did not notify the State Police authorities about the murder.
For this reason, they have been suspended from duty. Meanwhile, Miosid Matushaj has been arrested and is facing charges of “Failure to report a crime” and “Failure to take measures to stop the state of lawlessness”. Romeo Shehu, an employee of the Gjirokastër Municipal Police, also turns out to have been part of the group of people who exercised security functions in “Principote”. For him, the investigations are related to the responsibility for not reporting the event. The investigative file shows that at the time of the conflict in “Principote” there were two other people who exercised security functions. The police have referred their responsibilities for actions and inactions before and after the murder to the Prosecutor’s Office.
