Lawyer Furtuna Sheremeti, part of Rexhep Selimi’s defense team, requested that her client be acquitted on all counts of the indictment. Sheremeti described the 45-year sentence requested by the Prosecution as unprecedented.

“There is no evidence to support guilt on any of the charges against Selimi. He must be acquitted, and there can be no discussion of sentencing. However, if the Trial Panel proceeds to sentencing, the defense will address the Prosecution’s extraordinary request. The Prosecution is seeking 45 years for each of the accused, based on Rule 163(4), with a joint sentence, treating the totality of the alleged conduct as justification… The Prosecution’s request is disproportionate and unprecedented in the circumstances of this case, which has not been proven. A 45-year sentence is practically a life sentence. This is not proportional; it is a symbolic punishment presented as a sentence,” she said.

“The SPO’s final brief includes 24 victim impact statements. The harm described reflects suffering that no person should endure. However, none of that harm leads to Selimi. The only time Selimi is mentioned is in the testimony of witness 04644, and this brief mention is not related to mistreatment, violence, or any form of punishment. On the contrary, the witness described seeing Selimi arriving in a jeep and escorting the witness’s father-in-law away from the scene, without any allegation of abuse,” she said.