PRISTINA, Kosovo: The head of the European Union’s justice mission in Kosovo yesterday said he took “very seriously” allegations that some top officials had taken bribes to drop criminal cases and vowed a thorough investigation.
The accusations were made earlier this week by Maria Bamieh, a British prosecutor at the European Union Rule of Law Mission (EULEX) in Kosovo. Bamieh herself has been suspended pending an internal inquiry into leaks of confidential documents.
“We are taking all allegations very seriously,” EULEX head Gabriele Meucci told reporters, adding that the allegations levelled by Bamieh “will be thoroughly investigated”.
“The point is they were not ignored,” the Italian diplomat said. Bamieh told AFP on Tuesday that EULEX officials were taking bribes to halt some high-profile cases. She accused EU mission chief prosecutor Jaroslava Novotna, a Czech national, and former EU chief judge Francesco Florit of Italy of taking bribes from local criminals to drop three cases of organised crime, including murder. The bribes were allegedly taken in 2012 in 2013.
Local media reported that both Novotna and Florit were offered ¤350,000 ($441,000) each.
Bamieh also claimed that her boss, Canadian prosecutor Jonathan Ratel, was obstructing her in unveiling the information.
AFP
