Kosovo's former bank governor cleared of graft
Thu, 15 Dec 2011 20:58 GMT
PRISTINA, Dec 15 (Reuters) - The former governor of Kosovo's central bank was cleared of corruption charges, the European Union mission in the Balkan country said on Thursday, more than a year after the accusations cost him his job.
The EU's police and justice mission in Kosovo, EULEX, said a judge had dismissed all five counts against Hashim Rexhepi. They included abuse of official position or authority, trading in influence and fraud.
Diplomats have voiced concern over the case, suggesting the arrest may have been politically motivated.
"Finally justice was served," Rexhepi told Reuters. "I knew I was innocent, but now I am more relaxed."
The judge ruled that "even though the former governor undertook some inappropriate actions, his conduct was not linked to the exertion of any official power or authority and therefore no abuse of official position could have occurred," EULEX said in a statement.
Organised crime and corruption are widespread in Kosovo, deterring foreign investors and hampering development in the country of 1.7 million people, one of the poorest in Europe.
Rexhepi was arrested in mid-2010 and later sacked by the central bank.
Despite not being a member of the EU, Kosovo uses the euro as its currency, so the role of central bank governor is limited mainly to supervising the activity of commercial banks.
EULEX deployed in 2008 after Kosovo declared independence from Serbia. The mission supervises the work of the police and judiciary and also rules in certain sensitive cases involving war crimes, organised crime or corruption. (Reporting by Fatos Bytyci; Editing by Sophie Hares)
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