TIRANA, June 5 – A massive Italian police operation has netted 61 arrests, including 37 Albanian citizens, crippling a marijuana trafficking network that moved the narcotics from Albania to Italy.
Catania region prosecutors told local media the operation, code-named “The Balkans,” had led to the destruction of a large criminal organization.
During the investigations, launched in 2012, several police forces across Italy worked together to identify the suspects.
The most important part of the operation was carried out by Ragusa police and Como’s Guardia di Finanza, which led to the seizure of 1 ton of marijuana and some firearms used by the criminal group.
Investigations by the two law enforcement agencies had started out as separate, but then joined in a file that led to the identification of Albanian suppliers, according to the Italian media.
