Albanian courts receive extradited murderer Sokol Hoxha

Albanian authorities confirmed the arrival of Sokol Hoxha, a 51‑year‑old convicted of three murders, at Tirana International Airport on Thursday. Hoxha, who was arrested in Ohio, United States on 5 May 2026 after using a forged British passport, was extradited to Albania on a charter flight as part of a joint operation involving the Albanian State Police, the U.S. Marshals Service, Interpol offices in Tirana, Washington, Brussels and Manchester, and the U.S. Embassy’s Diplomatic Security Service.

In Albania he will serve a 25‑year prison sentence imposed for the 1997 killings of two brothers in Patos, while Belgian authorities are also seeking to enforce a life‑long sentence for the 1997 murder of Brunilda Dervish in Brussels. The extradition follows more than three decades of Hoxha’s detention in the United States and demonstrates extensive international police cooperation.

Albanian officials said the case will now proceed through domestic legal channels to enforce the Albanian judgment, and parallel discussions are underway with Belgian prosecutors regarding the execution of the Belgian life sentence.