A MAN on trial in the Albanian capital, Tirana, has allegedly shot and killed the presiding judge.
Appeals court judge Astrit Kalaja died on Monday as he was being transported to the hospital, Albanian police said.
The 30-year-old suspect fled the scene but was later detained, and the revolver he is believed to have used was also found, police added.
The gunman also shot a father and son who were party to the trial. They were both rushed to the hospital, where their injuries were deemed not to be life-threatening.
The Albanian press reported that the court case concerned a property dispute.
Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama described Kalaja’s death as a “tragic event”, saying that it should prompt a “reflection” on the courts’ internal security system.
In a statement posted on X, Rama called for tougher sentences for gun-related crimes. The judge’s killer should face “the most extreme legal response”, he wrote.
Meanwhile, President Bajram Begaj condemned the killing as “a terrible attack against the entire justice system”.
Between January and June this year, there were 213 gun-related incidents in Albania, according to data from the South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons.
Under Albanian law, illegal gun possession is punishable by up to three years in jail.
Since sweeping judicial reforms backed by the European Union and the United States were launched in Albania in 2016, the country has seen a large court backlog build-up, with tens of thousands of cases delayed for years.
