The Special Prosecutor’s Office (SPAK) is expected to ask Parliament for a second time to lift the immunity of former Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku, putting Prime Minister Edi Rama and the governing Socialist majority under renewed pressure over whether to allow the investigation to proceed.

According to local media reports, SPAK could submit its new request to Parliament as early as Friday or Saturday. The move comes as the investigation into Balluku has expanded, with several criminal proceedings reportedly consolidated into a broader case involving allegations of corruption, money laundering and concealment of assets.

Balluku is accused of violating tender procedures in multiple major infrastructure projects, including the Llogara Tunnel and sections of Tirana’s ring road. Prosecutors also allege that she benefited from properties provided as illicit rewards in connection with public contracts.

SPAK has linked Balluku to two luxury villas on Albania’s southern coast. Prosecutors allege that one property, valued at around €145,000, was obtained through a company that had benefited from a public tender, while a second villa in Palasë was allegedly held indirectly for Balluku. Investigators say construction costs for the second property were covered by a company that later won a major public contract.

The case has already triggered political and international controversy. Earlier this year, the Socialist majority rejected SPAK’s first request to lift Balluku’s immunity, preventing prosecutors from pursuing the requested security measure.

The decision drew criticism from Germany, Britain, the Netherlands and the European Commission, which called for Albania’s anti-corruption prosecutors to be able to investigate high-level corruption without political interference.

Rama has defended Parliament’s previous decision, arguing that SPAK does not have a “blank check” to arrest politicians.

The second immunity request is now expected to put the government under renewed scrutiny as prosecutors pursue a case that has grown from alleged irregularities in public tenders into a wider investigation involving corruption, money laundering, alleged hidden assets and two disputed luxury properties.