Wrote: Etrit Rexhepi
A photograph is published showing Faton Peci, Minister of Agriculture, with the caption "The Prosecution Office withdraws, Minister Faton Peci is as clean as a tear".
it CONTENT was published yesterday (May 27) on Facebook by a page called "Gazeta Plisi".
What's wrong with this content?
The Special Prosecution Office announced that it has completed the interview of the acting Minister of Agriculture, Faton Peci, regarding suspicions of leasing a factory for animal waste.
The caption in this content implies that the Prosecution has withdrawn from the investigations into Minister Peci and that he has been cleared of suspicion.
However, hibrid.info has found that this institution has stated that they are still in the investigation phase of this matter, conducting raids and checks based on the order of the preliminary procedure judge of the Basic Court of Pristina at the request of the Special Prosecution Office.
Which means that there is still no final result confirmed by the investigations conducted.
As of this writing, this post has received over 1 likes and over 200 comments.
The media reported yesterday that the Prosecution Office interviewed the acting Minister of Agriculture, Faton Peci, in connection with the investigation into the suspicions of leasing the animal waste factory. These media reported that Peci was interviewed in his capacity as a defendant (see here, here and here).
However, hibrid.info has found articles from other media, which, based on the statement of Arbnora Luta, the spokesperson for the Prosecution, confirm that Peci was interviewed for several hours as a suspect in this case. After being interviewed by the Special Investigation Unit, he was released in a regular procedure (see here and here).
To further clarify at what stage of the procedure Minister Peci is, Hibrid.info relied on the relevant provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code.
According to Article 19 of the Criminal Procedure Code in Kosovo for definitions, a suspect is considered a person whom the police or the state prosecutor suspect of having committed a criminal offense, but against whom an investigation has not been initiated, while a defendant is considered a person against whom criminal proceedings are being implemented (see here).
The same code defines that the accused is the person against whom an indictment has been filed and a court hearing has been scheduled.
Article 6 of the cited Code indicates that criminal proceedings begin with the initiation of investigations.
Whereas according to Article 9, paragraph 4 of this Code, if the state prosecutor assesses that sufficient evidence has been collected during the investigation to proceed to a judicial trial, the state prosecutor drafts the indictment and presents the facts on which he bases the indictment and provides evidence for these facts.
Hibrid.info has found a video published on the official YouTube channel of the medium "koha.net", which features Admir Shala, the prosecutor of the Special Prosecution Office, who addressed the media and told about the raids at the Ministry of Agriculture, the Agency for Agricultural Development, the Veterinary Agency, as well as at the location of the beneficiary company as part of the investigation into suspicions of granting use of the factory for processing animal products (see here).
Prosecutor Shala's full transcribed statement
"As you know, the Special Prosecution Office has launched an investigation regarding the leasing of the factory for the processing of animal products. The investigation is underway regarding the suspicions of leasing this factory. We are in the investigation phase, we are conducting the search and controls based on the order of the preliminary procedure judge of the Basic Court of Pristina at the request of the Special Prosecution Office. Also, with our authorization, the police, together with us, are taking the necessary actions in order to provide the necessary information and to clarify the specific case. For more detailed issues, we cannot go into detail at the moment, because we are in the investigation phase and please spare us because we are in the information gathering phase. The searches are taking place in four locations, they are ongoing and for any other action as far as we are allowed, we will inform you through the spokesperson of the Special Prosecution Office."
Based on official statements and the legal framework, it is clear that the case where Minister Faton Peci is a suspect or defendant is still in the investigation phase and that there is no confirmation of the closure of the case or further development as a result of the investigations conducted.
Analyze
The claim that the Prosecution has withdrawn from the investigation case regarding the use of the factory for processing animal products and that Minister Faton Peci, interviewed in this investigation, is clear of these suspicions, is unfounded.
The Special Prosecution Office has announced that the case is still in the investigation phase and that the collection of information is continuing.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info assesses the content as "Disinformation".
rationale
"Disinformation" is defined as information content that contains a "mix" of inaccurate sources or even half-truthful attributes, and that is created and/or distributed with the deliberate intention of causing harm. The motive behind the producers/distributors of disinformation content lies in achieving a political, financial, psychological or social goal.