UNMIK/PR/1713 - UNMIK Countdown #31
PRISTINA – Functioning within the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Kosovo Special Prosecutor’s Office (KSPO) is a capacity-building project aimed at upgrading skills among selected local public prosecutors to effectively investigate and prosecute serious crimes. The KSPO, which is funded by the European Agency for Reconstruction (EAR) and the Kosovo Consolidated Budget (KCB), offers a combined programme of monitoring, mentoring and formalized training to local prosecutors who have been appointed Special Prosecutors with the KSPO. Special Prosecutors work in tandem with International Prosecutors on complex cases involving inter-ethnic crime, trafficking in human beings, organized crime, terrorism and corruption charges.
The DOJ began steps to establish the KSPO in mid 2005, working on plans for the logistical infrastructure for the office, recruitment of staff and conceptualization of capacity-building methods. As well, DOJ worked in conjunction with the Office of The Legal Adviser on enabling legislation to establish the KSPO. Ultimately, the legal framework for the KSPO was set out in UNMIK Administrative Direction 2008/15, which came into effect on 30 September 2006.
Five Special Prosecutors are now in place. They have integrated well into DOJ’s Criminal Division and are actively working on cases and participating in training activities. DOJ’s goal is to recruit a total of 10 Special Prosecutors, and concerted efforts are being made in this regard. Recruitment remains a constant challenge, as the nature of the cases handled by Special Prosecutors may attract greater risks than normally faced by local public prosecutors.
Since its establishment, there have been numerous achievements of the KSPO:
- Special Prosecutors are handling more than 30 cases involving criminal offences of a type previously investigated and prosecuted exclusively by International Prosecutors;
- The KSPO concluded its first case, for the offence of Unauthorised Purchase, Possession, Distribution and Sale of Dangerous Narcotic Drugs, on 17 September, with a guilty verdict, resulting in one year imprisonment.
- On 17 September, an indictment was confirmed in another KSPO case charging five persons with aggravated attempted murder and weapons offence following the shooting of the Head of the Telecommunications Regulatory Agency, Anton Berisha and others;
- In addition, a guilty verdict was issued on 12 November 2007 in a KSPO case on a charge of Unauthorized Ownership, Control, Possession or Use of Weapons. The Court issued a sentence of 5 months imprisonment.
