TIRANA, May 17 – Klemend Balili, dubbed by the media as the ‘Balkan Escobar’, is officially a wanted person after Greek authorities have presented Interpol Tirana with a warrant for his arrest.
Balili is wanted by Greece as the kingpin of an international drug trafficking network which transported huge quantities of marijuana and cocaine in Europe via Greece through bogus transport companies set up by the ring.
The Albanian police, who had claimed that they had not arrested Balili because they were yet to receive an arrest warrant on him, are now trying to locate his whereabouts following the arrival of an official request for his arrest.
Interior Minister Saimir Tahiri during an interview on Monday on Top Channel television confirmed that Balili’s arrest was only a matter of time pending the arrival of the arrest warrant issued by Greek authorities.
Meanwhile, Balili is nowhere to be found. Saranda police could not locate him for questioning prior to the arrest order.
Data from the TIMS system, which logs international arrivals and departures to and from Albania, show that Balili has not left the country with the passport issued by Albanian authorities, while it is not excluded that he might have fled the country illegally.
His name surfaced last week following Greek media reports which identified him as the alleged kingpin, while they also made allegations that Albanian authorities were hesitating to arrest him because of Balili’s strong political connections.
It is not clear why his name emerged in the media before the arrest warrant was issued and why paperwork for his arrest took so long to arrive.
Until a week ago, Balili held the post of regional transport director in Saranda. He was sacked following Greek media reports linking him to a drug smuggling network worth millions of euros.
Balili, who also owns a luxury tourist resort in Saranda, is perceived as a person with strong political connections.
The opposition has highlighted Balili’s political ties and has accused Interior Minister Saimir Tahiri of sheltering the alleged drug baron. Tahiri has rebuffed the accusations.
The international drug smuggling ring was dismantled following a massive operation launched by law enforcement agencies of several European countries as well as the American Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
So far, police have arrested 17 persons part of the network, 11 Greeks and 6 Albanian nationals.
