Aldo I., who stands accused of a 2020 shooting in Remich and featured on 'Europe's most wanted list', began his trial under heavy police security on Monday, offering a self-defence claim that contrasts with the victim's account of the incident.
The trial of one of 'Europe's most wanted' criminals began in the presence of a major police force on Monday. The defendant, Aldo I., stands accused of having shot and injured man in Remich in November 2020. After years on the run, he was arrested in Brussels in 2022 and subsequently extradited to the Grand Duchy.
The 33-year-old from Albania did not deny the Remich shooting, but presented a different version of the events to the court than the victim.
According to Aldo I., he was at a local bar with three female friends on the day in question. After two customers chatted up his company, a verbal dispute is said to have broken out. The defendant claimed that he was then lured outside where at least five waited for him, including the later victim, who he said stabbed him in the leg.
Aldo I. explained he then fired fours shots, one of which hit the knife-wielding man in the leg, thus presenting the incident as a matter of self-defence. He fled the scene with the help of a friend who was supposed to meet him later on to purchase cocaine.
After Aldo I. was arrested in Brussels, an expert was unable to determine with certainty if the scar on the defendant's leg could date back to the Remich altercation.
Alternative version
The victim's version of the events was different, but also left a number of questions open. According to the man, who is also Albanian, he was not involved in the altercation inside the bar, but a friend of his was.
When he later left the establishment, he still felt threatened and therefore picked up a wooden block, which he hid in his chest pocket. He said that he then heard a shot on the other side of the street and quickly ran over.
There he suddenly found himself opposite the defendant, who shot him when he reached for the wooden block. Nevertheless, the victim indicated that he does not believe Aldo I. attempted to kill him.
A regrettable incident
The judge wanted to know from the victim if it was not a truncheon rather than a wooden block that he carried at the time, which the man denied. When asked whether any of the other people present at the scene were armed, he said he was unable to say with certainty. However, he believes that one of the 30 people was carrying a baseball bat.
The victim was not asking for any damages and concluded by voicing his regret over the incident, particularly since two Albanians now find themselves in court, a wrong image in his eyes.
The trial is set to continue on Wednesday with witnesses expected to take the stand.
