TIRANA, March 29 – Italian authorities confiscated more than 500 kg of cannabis coming from Albania to Puglia’s coastline, arresting the two Albanians driving the speedboat in the process.
Two police officers from the Tri Port border crossing were also arrested in Albania for allowing the vehicle to exit the country unregistered.
According to local media it was Albanian police giving a heads up to Italian authorities for doubts over the content of the speedboat. The two arrested Albanians will go to trial with international drug trafficking charges.
The amount confiscated, Italian authorities said, equals a €5 million market value.
The Albanian police officers arrested were Deputy Commissioner Bledar Kuci and Inspector Idlir Ajazaj for power abuse.
According to the police, “it results the sailing vehicle, which appears to be documented and registered at the Border Station, entered the Tri Port border crossing and, without registering, then left to sea.”
Albania is struggling with the massive cultivation and trafficking of cannabis in recent years, with the government vowing to eradicate it amid opposition claims that segments of the government directly profit from trafficking.
Former Interior Minister Saimir Tahiri is under criminal investigation over alleged ties with one of the major trafficking gangs, the Habilaj group.
Even though the Albanian government said the problem has largely been solved, massive amount are seized by domestic and international law enforcement on a weekly basis, showing that the problem continues to exist.
