Fier Prosecutor's Office concluded its investigations and took A.L., F.S., and E.L. to court for the criminal offense of 'Damaging habitats in protected environmental zones,' as outlined in Articles 202/b and 25 of the Criminal Code.

The investigation, conducted under criminal case no. 310/2022, revealed that the defendants, in violation of the current legislation on protected areas, carried out actions that caused significant damage to the habitat within the protected environmental zone.

Fier Prosecution has substantiated that the defendants had extracted gravel from Vjosa River, which was designated as a Natural Park through Council of Ministers Decision no. 59, dated 26.01.2022. They, in complicity with each other, have removed inert materials from the river ground of Vjosa River, an area classified as a "strict nature reserve," where all human activity is prohibited. Regarding their involvement in this criminal activity, defendant A.L. served as the organizer and administrator of the companies benefiting from the extracted materials. He exploited the labor of truck driver F.S. and excavator operator E.L., who was employed as an excavator operator.

The investigations revealed that since 2014, fines have been imposed for the illegal dumping of inert materials (river gravel) without appropriate documentation at the site of defendant A.L. This highlights the prolonged nature of the illegal activity, which has been documented in the cases under trial as well, thus, causing significant harm to habitats within the protected area.

Such actions have caused damage of 3,000,000 lek.

Fier Prosecution Office is fully committed to continuing its investigation into criminal activities related to environmental protection.