
In the early 1990s, the town of Rrëshen was dominated by two influential families in the area: the Reçi and the Bardhi. The two tribes had built their reputations through strength and tradition. Each of them was known for a deep sense of territorial control. Ilir Reçi, then 20 years old, who was known as the strongman of the area, was the person who ignited the conflict between the two families. He confronted one of Martin Bardhi's brothers, where in a threatening tone, he told him that no member of the Bardhi tribe should come to the town of Rrëshen, considering it as the territory of the Reçi.
"The correct identification of the perpetrators of the murder, their punishment according to the law and then, the police to monitor and take extra care of the families that were in conflict, and not to neglect any information or clues that had to do with the ongoing progress of this conflict," said former prosecutor Eugen Beci.
"There are 4 tribes that, from 1995 to the present day, continue a saga of successive killings. There are 4 tribes that have committed mutual murders among themselves," said lawyer Alfred Bari.
Ilir Reçi's threat quickly spread in the area as news and damaged the reputation of the Bardhës. Pjetër Bardhi, the elder brother of the family, could not easily overcome the threat of the Reçs. He undertook a journey from Shkodra, where he was an army officer, towards Rrëshen, to confront Ilir Reçi. Without even going to the apartment, he headed to the city center. As soon as he confronted Ilir Reçi, without saying a word, he shot him with his service weapon, causing his instant death.
"In families where there is enmity, where there is blood feud, whether they like it or not, people and members of these families grow up with the spirit to take care of themselves and their family," said lawyer Alfred Bari,
After the murder, Pjetër Bardhi fled and disappeared from Rrëshen. Although he was convicted in absentia, he never served a single day in prison. As 28 years have passed since the incident, his sentence has been prescribed. Pjetër Bardhi, for these 3 decades, continued his life away from Albania.
"Important in preventing serious criminal events or in interrupting the chain of blood feuds is the preventive power through their criminal sentences," said former prosecutor Eugen Beci.
The Reçi family's lawyer speaks out: Saimir's injury after the conflict of the moment...
After all these years, where many thought that the two tribes had found a form of peace, the truth was different. They lived in a dangerous silence, avoiding conflicts, but never forgetting the consequences of the tragic event of three decades ago. That silence would not last forever. The accumulated tension exploded on March 26, 2023, when Saimir Reçi was injured. That day, the two families would openly confront each other. The silent pact was violated by the young people. An event that seemed rather banal, turned out to be well-organized by Erind Bardhi... Referring to the investigative file, Saimir Reçi, who miraculously escaped, testifies that some unknown persons were filming his apartment. This alarmed him, given the family's enmity.
"In the neighborhood I saw a 'Mercedes Benz' 220 vehicle, driven by F.LL, the son of a police officer. In the back seat, there was another citizen, who was holding a mobile phone, where they were filming my apartment."
After this moment, Reçi followed his neighbor and after stopping him on the street, he slapped him. At this moment, Enrik Bardhi alias Marku, the son of Martin Bardhi, also gets out of the vehicle. According to Reçi's testimony, he also hit the latter, causing him several injuries.
'For me, the incident that happened with Sajmir could have been closed even with the normalization of relations between the parties, so there should have been goodwill between the parties, it could have been closed because it was a spur-of-the-moment incident, a conflict that happened earlier on the street between Sajmir and Martin's son, and what happened later was the assassination attempt on him,' said lawyer Aleksander Ndrejaj.
A few hours later, Saimir Reçi was confronted by members of the Bardhi family, who had set a trap for him. They ambushed him in the city center and opened fire on him. Reçi miraculously escaped thanks to the armored vehicle he was traveling in.
"I went out in my BMW 7 series, stopped in front of the 'Filopati' bar and asked to buy a phone card. Then, an Audi A8 vehicle blocked my way. Martin Bardhi, Kristian Bardhi and Erind Bardhi got out of that vehicle, holding weapons in their hands."
"The target of the attack was lucky. The shooter had high precision, shooting several times into the driver's window."