Thoma Gellci: A wrongful detention and SPAK’s numbers game

In just two days, we’ve seen two notable statistics—one from SPAK (Albania’s Special Structure against Corruption and Organized Crime) and another from the Strasbourg Court.

SPAK, responding to Prime Minister Edi Rama’s criticism of excessive pre-trial detentions, stated that only 40% of its investigations result in pre-trial detention. It presented this as a defense, implying that it could have sought detention in all cases under investigation. The real issue, however, is that we’re discussing pre-trial detentions with SPAK rather than the Special Court against Corruption and Organized Crime. This is because the court has essentially become a rubber stamp, approving SPAK’s charges almost by default.

The second statistic came from the Strasbourg Court, which ruled that the pre-trial detention of Thoma Gellci, former director of Albania’s public broadcaster, RTVSh, was unlawful. As far as I know, this is the first time Europe’s highest human rights court has ruled against SPAK. Until now, no Albanian court had dared to challenge SPAK’s decisions, largely because public opinion has been on its side. But Strasbourg overturned what no local court would.

Gellci’s case was handled by prosecutor Doloreza Musabelliu and judged by Erjon Cela, Irena Gjoka, and the now-infamous Erion Bani. He spent over a year in Prison 313—where common criminals are held—sharing a cell with three others. I can’t say whether he avoided falling into depression after being jailed for a crime he didn’t commit. Meanwhile, his case is still being reviewed by the Supreme Court. Strasbourg ruled only on the unlawfulness of his pre-trial detention.

Now that five university professors have also been caught in this debate over pre-trial detentions, we need to set a legal standard. This isn’t a numbers game—it’s about whether justice is truly served. The core principle of justice is that it’s better for a guilty person to go free than for an innocent one to be jailed.

SPAK may boast that only 40% of its cases lead to pre-trial detention, but the first case reviewed by Strasbourg has already been deemed unlawful. So who is responsible for the injustice suffered by Thoma Gellci? And who will be held accountable for the many other wrongful detentions likely to follow?

Anyone who believes Strasbourg will justify arresting people first and gathering evidence later has the mindset of a persecutor, not a prosecutor. Anyone who thinks a prosecutor can insult a defendant in court is not a legal professional but a street thug. And those who use personal investigations to intimidate opponents are not part of the judiciary—they are voyeurs and abusers of power.

One day, all these investigative abuses will make their way to Strasbourg, and Albanians will see how those claiming to fight corruption have actually been fueling mob justice—feeding the public private details of defendants' lives, which is itself a crime.

Fighting corruption should create a culture of integrity and distance the public administration from corrupt practices—not revive the show trials of Albania’s communist past.

Gellci’s case marks the first real test of Albania’s new justice system against Western legal standards—and unfortunately, it has failed. He remained in prison because of judicial arrogance, while other officials, professors, and experts now face pre-trial detention for cases that may collapse.

This is not how justice should work. Corruption in Albania is a deep wound, but it won’t be healed with propaganda and theatrical arrests. Justice requires high investigative standards that apply to everyone equally, along with clear prosecution priorities. Anything else is just a witch hunt—destroying lives in ways no compensation can ever undo.

The article initially appeared in Albanian titled: "Thoma Gëllçi, i paraburgosuri i gabuar dhe statistikat e SPAK"