Albania Oil Magnate Denied Bail Over Assault

Tirana's district court on Tuesday denied an appeal from lawyers representing controversial oil magnate Rezart Taci, who was arrested over the assault of publisher and political commentator Mero Baze.

Taci handed himself over to police on November 6, after the local district court ordered his arrest following charges of assault.

A businessman with close ties to Prime Minister Sali Berisha, Taci allegedly viciously assaulted publisher and journalist Mero Baze on November 2 in Tirana, following a series of reports that accused the businessman of tax evasion.  

Taci is known as one of Tirana’s businessman belonging to Prime Minister Berisha's inner circle. His other company, Taci Oil International, has spent millions of euros organising charity football matches, with the proceeds donated to a children's charity headed by Berisha's wife.

Baze ran a series of critical reports on his TV Show, Faktor Plus, on Vizion Plus TV, that accused Rezart Taci and his company, the ARMO oil refinery, of massive tax evasion.
 
Apart from the TV show, Baze also publishes the Tirana daily TemA, a publication very critical of the government.
The businessman has denied taking part in the attack.

“I totally deny the allegations that I participated in the brutalities that have caused severe injuries to Mr. Baze. I not only deny my involvement, but I also condemn violence that so often mars our modern society,” he wrote in a statement.

The attack, which happened in the presence of two other journalists and other witnesses in a Tirana bar, has been condemned by local politicians, diplomats and national and international media organisations.