ELBASAN, Jan. 15 – Police have busted a large cocaine processing facility in rural central Albania, seizing large amounts of the drug and leading to the arrest of eleven people — including two Colombians working in the lab and the grandson of Albania’s former communist dictator.
The bust, prosecutors said, marks the largest amount of cocaine ever seized in Albania, about 100 kilograms in total. Most of the cocaine, in both cut and concentrate form, was found in a rural warehouse in Elbasan County, close to Albania’s main East-West highway. In addition, approximately 18 kilos of cocaine and about €340,000 were found in the car of one of the Albanian men arrested.
“This was a well-structured group with international ties ranging from Latin America to the Balkans, and Western Europe as a destination. The group was able to secure the narcotics, which were then processed to extract pure cocaine, which was then marketed in the local and international markets. As part of the processing portion, the organization had hired two Colombians,” a police spokesman, Genti Mullai, said at a press conference.
Albanian police were first alerted to the drug network by their counterparts in Germany, the country that appears to have been the main destination for the finished product, with raw materials originating from Latin America, arriving in Albania mixed in palm oil used for commercial cooking.
Police were on the trail of the criminal group for several months, before they found enough information through wiretapping to move on the accused criminals, local media reported.
Albanian media has been leading the story that that one of the men arrested is Ermal Hoxha, the nephew of former communist dictator Enver Hoxha.
According to local media, the head of the organization was Ilir Hyseni, who was in charge of moving the cocaine to Western European markets, mainly to Germany.
Police said there are several more people wanted in connection with participation in the criminal organization, which is suspected to have invested millions of euros in revenue from the drug traffic in real estate in different parts of Albania.
Prime Minister Edi Rama hailed the bust, through his social media presence, calling it an “extraordinary operation” and “spectacular seizure of over 100 kilograms of cocaine.”
