Tirana-Athens bus driver gets €800 for passport stamp, Greek side fines him €1,200

A resident of Gramsh addressed the show "Fiks Fare" about a problem with a Tirana-Athens bus driver, who took 800 euros to stamp his passport without him being present. 

The driver stamped it, but when the complainant passes through customs a few weeks later, the Greek side tells him that he must pay a fine of 1,200 euros, because he has exceeded the number of days he has to stay in Greece.

Agim Mema complained to the editorial office of the investigative show, saying that the driver who took 800 euros from him is Shpëtim Kola. He says that the citizen was in Greece and the driver took over the stamping without being present himself, in exchange for money.

He says that he was connected to the driver by a friend of his who told him that "the job was over". "I was an immigrant and I didn't want to come to Albania and I paid 800 euros to stay for another 3 months. I gave him my passport and he gave it back to me after a few weeks. He told me that now you have no problem, you can stay. He said that's how they all do it. I didn't have any papers, so I worked wherever I could," the citizen claims.

He further adds that he paid 800 euros and has to pay another 1,200 euros. "Where can I find them? Now I can't even leave, I'm staying here and working as a waiter in Durres with a small salary. I have a family to support and they took it out on me," he says.

The complainant, Agim Mema, has been chatting on social media with the driver Shpëtim Kola. The conversations began in April 2025. Agim asks him what will happen to his passport, while the driver replies that "they stole my bag with all the money and my passport. Go and report it and get another one. I'll give them the money because I have nothing else to do."

Then he asks what happened, and he replies that "it seems yours was found". The driver tells Agim to stay calm because he will answer for everything. Agim insists that he send his passport to the country where he was an immigrant in Greece, while the driver tells him that "I will send it, I will answer".

Agim writes to him that "how much money did you want to take? 800". He replies that there is no problem anywhere and that he will send him the passport. Meanwhile, on May 1, 2025, after Agim has received the passport, he asks the driver about the problem he encountered at customs. The bus driver writes to him that "it didn't bother me, because if there was a problem with this, they would have kept you inside".

Agim also sends him a photo of his passport with the stamp and a cross above it. Shpëtimi writes that "if it was a fake one, they would keep it inside, my friend, you have a regular one."

Meanwhile, Agim then sends him the fine of 1,200 euros. He tells him to "go complain tomorrow that you are fine. Tell them they turned me back". The driver insists that if it were false they would keep him inside, as he writes to him that "it was bad, there was a fight from the beginning". Agim asks him why they gave him the fine, while he replies that "you are fine, check it wherever you want". In the end, the driver writes to Agim that "I told you, this is how you start a fight, this is how I end it".

Meanwhile, the citizen calls the driver. The driver tells him that “this only happened to me with you”. According to him, he has stamped it at customs and that everything is correct. “If there were problems with the stamp, they would accuse you of forgery. You are correct. I don’t know why they imposed the fine” he says. The citizen asks for his payment back, while he tells him that they will talk and hangs up.

The complainant also has conversations with a person named Armand, who is the liaison between the two. The conversations begin before he gives the money. Armand writes to him that "he does it, 650 with one stamp, 800 with two stamps, both for the Greek and the Albanian". He then tells him that if you want it as soon as possible, since he is the one who does the shift, think about it and tell me and he, the driver, is responsible for everything".

After Agimi received the fine at the border, he writes to Armand again! Agimi asks him to talk to Shpëtim, the driver, and return the money. Armand writes to him that "oh friend, he got the money, not me. He says to get a lawyer because if it was fake they would have put him in jail. He does this job every day and how did it turn out without any problems. How did it turn out for you".

Meanwhile, Armand writes to Agimi that "he was caught at customs, giving you a fine for nothing, what is the other person's fault". Agimi asks him why they gave him the fine and if Armand has spoken to the driver. "There is no reason," he told me, "I went with a lawyer, they told me that day that they don't know anything". Agimi writes to him that he won't get a lawyer, but to talk to the driver and have him return the 1200 euros. Armand replies that "I'll take it from him as I tell him. He says he won't give you back any money because the job is done right. You're the first one to have a problem". /Fiks Fare