Man Found Guilty of Perverting Justice in Brutal Double Murder Cover-Up
Mirjan Ismaili, 52, with no fixed address, was found guilty of perverting the course of justice at Isleworth Crown Court on 28 February. He faces sentencing on 2 March.
Helping Friend After Shocking Mill Hill Double Murder
The court heard Ismaili rushed to aid his pal, Besnik Berisha, right after the brutal stabbing murders of Shkelqim Paja and Arber Fesko on 19 December 2019.
Berisha, alongside accomplice Kiziku Tuwizana, ambushed and fatally stabbed the victims in Mill Hill’s Courtlands Avenue around 8pm. After killing Shkelqim and Arber, the murderers split up. Berisha took Shkelqim’s body to a remote spot near Elstree and dumped it.
Cover-Up Gone Wrong: CCTV and Deleted Footage Expose Plot
- Within 30 minutes, Berisha called Ismaili, who sped off from his home in Ecclesbourne Close, N13, driving his BMW to meet Berisha.
- Berisha was driving a white Peugeot van used to dump the body; Ismaili was insured to drive the van and had a vested interest in it.
- CCTV tracked their van and BMW convoy roaming London for nine hours, covering their attempts to hide evidence.
- The van was abandoned in Barnet at 3am, while Ismaili’s BMW headed towards Berisha’s home before Ismaili returned home on foot—deliberately parking away to avoid detection.
- Ismaili deleted footage from his Ring doorbell around his time of arrival, clearly trying to erase his trail.
Fleeing the Country After Crime, Caught Abroad
The next day, Ismaili left Britain through the Eurotunnel on a planned family trip but never returned as scheduled on 2 January 2020. He vanished completely until his BMW was found by Italian police in February 2020 and sent back to the UK.
Forensic experts discovered traces of Shkelqim Paja’s blood in the vehicle. An arrest warrant was issued, and Ismaili was later detained in Switzerland. He was extradited back to the UK in November 2021.
Detective Slams Ismaili’s Role in the Cover-Up
“Mirjan Ismaili did not murder Shkelqim Paja and Arber Fesko but he played an integral part in trying to ensure those who did evaded detection,” said Detective Chief Inspector Neil Rawlinson from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command.
“Ismaili was insured to drive the van used to dispose of one of the bodies and was present when it was dumped. He did not ask any questions about what was happening and his account did not stand up to scrutiny.
“He deliberately wiped his doorbell footage and then fled the UK for two years. It is clear that he knew what Berisha and Tuwizana had done; he willingly tried to assist them in disposing of evidence, and now he has rightly been held to account for his actions.”
