Scenes of turmoil unfolded during the funeral of Fredi Beleri‘s grandmother on Sunday, where clashes erupted between mourners and Albanian police.
The mayor-elect of the ethnically Greek city of Himarre found himself in handcuffs, given only a brief window to pay his respects.
As reported by the local news outlet Himara.gr, the tension escalated when mourners began applauding and calling out Beleri’s name as he arrived at the cemetery in a police van, heavily guarded.
The situation intensified when he was allowed just 10 minutes outside the vehicle during the burial, still restrained in handcuffs. Mourners expressed their discontent, jeering at police officers and engaging in scuffles as they attempted to reach the mayor-elect before he was returned to the van and swiftly taken back to prison.
Fredi Beleri, detained on vote-tampering charges since the local elections in May, had been granted a six-hour leave to attend the funeral and the wake at his grandmother’s house following the service.
Beleri has been held without charges on suspicion of ballot fraud since May, while several appeals to be released have been rejected by Albanian courts.
