Ismet BAHTJARI and Sabit JANUZI have been arrested in Kosovo by the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office (SPO), pursuant to an arrest warrant and transfer order issued by a Pre-Trial Judge of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers.
They have been transferred to the Detention Facilities of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague and will appear before a Pre-Trial Judge of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers without undue delay.
Mr Bahtjari and Mr Januzi were arrested for offences against the administration of justice, including intimidation during criminal proceedings under Article 387 of the 2019 Kosovo Criminal Code (KCC), Code No. 06/L-074 and obstructing official persons in performing official duties within the meaning of Article 401(1), (2) and (5) of the KCC in violation of Article 15(2) of Law No. 05/L-53 on Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor’s Office. The Pre-Trial Judge has found a well-grounded suspicion that Mr Bahtjari and Mr Januzi tried to dissuade a witness from testifying in Specialist Chambers proceedings.
The European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) provided operational and logistic support to the SPO in line with its mandate and in accordance with the Kosovo legislation. The Kosovo Police also provided operational support to the SPO.
Further details will be provided in due course.
The Specialist Prosecutor’s Office takes witness intimidation, retaliation against witnesses and obstruction of justice extremely seriously and will continue to investigate and to prosecute anyone and everyone involved in every instance.
