The group hit by SPAK, VOA: Involved in drug trafficking from Latin America

The group hit on Monday by order of the Special Prosecutor's Office, which allegedly included former officials or police officers, turns out to be involved in drug trafficking from Latin America to Europe, as well as in criminal events that occurred in Albania. Out of 11 people for whom arrest warrants were issued, only 5 of them were caught, while the others turned out to be outside of Albania. The former Deputy Director of Tirana Police Erzen Breçani ended up in handcuffs; the current head of the Crime Investigation at Police Station 6 in Tirana Dedan Gjoni; Bujar Gërmizi, a character who is suspected of having significant activity in drug trafficking, as well as Besmir Murati, closely related to Gërmizi. Another police officer who worked in the Border Directorate, Jonida Babameto, has been placed under the "compulsion to appear" measure. Among the wanted persons is Ervin Mata, a well-known name, who has previously been suspected of involvement in drug trafficking.

Former police official Breçani is suspected of supporting the perpetrator of the crime and money laundering. His son, Eralb Breçani, is also among the wanted persons. It is not yet clear their role and the concrete events in which they may have been involved. While the police officer Gjoni, is suspected of having helped Gërmiz, who aimed to kill two Albanian brothers who lived in Great Britain, due to the breakdown of drug deals. Gjoni is thought to have implicated the border officer, Babameto, who provided information on the entry and exit of the brothers who were targeted by Gërmizi in Albania.

The crackdown on the group came thanks to the crackdown by European police authorities of the SKY ETC app, which was used by criminal groups as it offered encrypted communication. In its announcement, the Special Prosecutor's Office announced that the investigations were carried out "in intensive cooperation with Eurojust, Europol and the Dutch, Belgian, German, Brazilian, Colombian and French law enforcement agencies". According to the Special Prosecutor's Office, "during the intensive investigations carried out by the BKH investigators, under the direction of the special prosecutors, it became possible to document the criminal activity of the suspected persons, as well as to identify some of the perpetrators of the criminal events and of criminal offences, which were committed in collaboration, in the form of a structured criminal group", which mentions the seizure of 446 kg of cocaine in the Netherlands, in January 2023, of 69 kg of cocaine in Brazil a month later, the seizure in Erëitte of 166 kg of marijuana, sent from Spain to Germany, or a quantity of 250 kg of cocaine, sent from Brazil to Frankfurt airport in Germany.

During the checks in the suspect's residences, monetary amounts, vehicles, telephones, various firearms were found and seized, while the seizure of the assets, which turn out to have been created from the income secured by criminal activities, was requested. The Special Prosecutor's Office announced that "the documentation of other episodes of narcotics trafficking from Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and other Latin American countries to the countries of the European Union is continuing"./ VOA