Albania’s Special Prosecution against Corruption (SPAK) has filed a recourse with the Supreme Court seeking the re-imprisonment of former Environment Minister Lefter Koka, but authorities say he cannot be located at his registered residence.

According to a public notice dated April 17, attempts to formally notify Koka of the appeal failed after postal services returned the communication marked “moved.” His current whereabouts remain unknown.

SPAK has challenged a February 2026 court interpretation that led to Koka’s release, arguing that the decision should be overturned and that he should be returned to custody. The move comes just months after the Special Appeals Court for Corruption and Organized Crime (GJKKO) lifted his detention.

Koka had been held in custody since December 2021 on charges including abuse of office, corruption, and money laundering tied to the controversial Fier waste incinerator project. Prosecutors allege that approximately €4 million was paid for works that were never carried out, while the scheme caused an estimated 60 million lek (roughly $600,000) in damage to the state budget.

On December 11, 2025, GJKKO revoked the “arrest in prison” measure in the Fier incinerator case, returning the matter for retrial. However, the case has yet to be registered in the appeals system, effectively exhausting the legal time limits for pretrial detention in the absence of a final ruling.

Separately, in July 2025, Koka secured conditional release from the Durrës Court in a related case involving the Elbasan incinerator, where he had been sentenced to six years and eight months in prison under a shortened trial procedure. In another case linked to Tirana, his two-year sentence for abuse of office was considered served through time already spent in pretrial detention.

Authorities have not yet issued further details on efforts to locate Koka.