Case Involving Critical State Infrastructure Adds to Albania’s Growing High Level Corruption Crisis
Tirana Times – December 16, 2025 Albania’s Special Anti-Corruption Structure, SPAK, in cooperation with the National Bureau of Investigation, BKH, has carried out a large-scale operation targeting an alleged criminal network operating at the highest levels of the National Agency for the Information Society, AKSHI, one of the country’s most sensitive state institutions responsible for managing critical digital infrastructure.
The operation resulted in security measures against eight individuals, including AKSHI Director General Mirlinda Karçanaj and Deputy Director Hava Delibashi, who were both placed under house arrest. According to SPAK, the two senior officials are suspected of being members of a structured criminal group that systematically manipulated public procurement procedures within the agency.
Prosecutors accuse the alleged group leaders, Ergys Agasi and Ermal Beqiraj, of organizing and directing the scheme. Both face charges of illegal competition through coercion, unlawful deprivation of liberty, violation of equality in public tenders, participation in a structured criminal group, and money laundering. Arrest warrants have been issued for both individuals, but remain unexecuted as they evaded police action.
In its official statement, SPAK said that the suspects used intimidation, violence, and coercion against representatives of competing companies, forcing them to withdraw appeals and legal complaints related to AKSHI tenders. These actions allegedly ensured that preselected companies secured lucrative public contracts, even in cases where formal complaints could have altered the ranking of winning bids.
The investigation also implicates Erion Ismaili, Deputy Director for Crime Investigation at the Tirana Police, who has been suspended from duty and banned from leaving the country. Three businessmen, Andis Papa, Gëzim Hoxha, and Rogers Rryta, have been placed under travel bans, accused of facilitating the scheme through fictitious invoicing and sham participation in procurement processes.
The case has raised serious concerns due to AKSHI’s strategic role within the Albanian state. The agency manages e Albania, the central digital governance platform that connects citizens to public institutions and enables access to hundreds of administrative services and official documents. AKSHI is also involved in advanced digitalization projects, including initiatives related to artificial intelligence and secure state data management.
Given these responsibilities, AKSHI is widely considered a key institution for national security, as it oversees systems and data classified as part of Albania’s critical infrastructure. The findings of the SPAK investigation suggest that sensitive state functions and public funds may have been exposed to criminal influence, raising questions about cybersecurity, data protection, and institutional integrity.
Several of the individuals implicated in the investigation are well known to the public. Ergys Agasi is a tobacco businessman with interests in professional football and has frequently been portrayed by opposition figures as a powerful behind the scenes operator with alleged links to Prime Minister Edi Rama, allegations he has previously denied. Former Deputy Prime Minister Arben Ahmetaj has publicly accused Agasi of acting as an intermediary between organized crime groups and the government. Ermal Beqiraj has also been involved in several politically sensitive cases in the past, including disputes over evidence related to corruption allegations against former President Ilir Meta and controversies surrounding the handling of the tax administration’s digital system in 2015. According to data from Open Spending Albania, companies linked to Beqiraj have received approximately 2.1 billion lekë in public contracts from AKSHI.
Despite the scale of the operation and the sensitivity of the institution involved, the Prime Minister’s Office did not respond to inquiries regarding the SPAK action prior to publication.
The arrest of the AKSHI director comes amid an unprecedented wave of investigations and prosecutions against senior officials in Albania. Over the past two years, SPAK has opened cases against current and former ministers, members of parliament, and mayors of major municipalities, with several already convicted and others under investigation or on trial. These cases involve allegations of corruption, abuse of office, money laundering, and links to organized crime.
On the same day as the AKSHI operation, SPAK requested parliament to lift the immunity of the Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku and sought her arrest, highlighting the expansion of anti corruption investigations into the highest levels of the executive branch. Together, these developments underline a deepening institutional crisis, as law enforcement actions increasingly target senior political figures while testing Albania’s political stability, rule of law reforms, and commitments within the European Union accession process.
The post AKSHI Director Arrested in Major Corruption Probe appeared first on Tirana Times.
