Albanian prosecution seizes assets of ruling party MP

The assets of a law maker of Albania's ruling party were seized, local media reported Wednesday, citing rulings by the country's serious crimes court.

Alfred Peza, member of the ruling Socialist Party and member of the parliament (MP), had more than 600,000 euros (643,260 U.S. dollars) in assets registered under his wife's name. As he couldn't justify the origin of the assets, prosecutors had requested that the money be confiscated.

The court also seized one percent of shares belonging to Peza's wife, Mirela Ndini, in a second-tier bank, worth 850,000 euros (911,285 dollars), media reported, citing sources from the Albanian prosecution.

Prosecutors said at the court that both Peza and Ndini had failed to justify the sources of their acquisitions and investment. They had also failed to declare the real value of their assets in a wealth declaration form as stipulated by Albanian legislation.

According to media reports, the prosecution has requested legal proceedings against the MP. In addition to possibly losing his parliamentary mandate, the couple may also be imprisoned for several years.

The court's rulings were based on the anti-mafia law, which is designed to prevent and clamp down on organized crime, trafficking and corruption by confiscating the assets of persons who have unjustified economic gains as a result of suspected criminal activities. Endi