Tough fight on corruption, most wanted, money laundry

TIRANA, May 30 – Albania’s law enforcement authorities have intensified their attack on illegal activities in the country and cooperation with partners to stop the international crime traffic.
During the last days police arrested nine officials of the road transport department in the port city of Durres accusing them of corruption. They offered fake documentation on the alleged car check against certain amounts of money. the arrests were made after four months of investigation.
Alongside the police operation in the port city it was also learnt they had also arrested six other persons for prostitution.
In northern city of Shkodra police arrested a persona and also confiscated his property, worth some 700,000 euro, accusing him of money laundry. The Albanian man was involved in illegal drug traffic in Germany and had used the illegal money he had profited from that to buy many apartments and open businesses registered with the names of his family in Shkodra.
In southern Sopot mountain near Lazarat commune police stopped some mules carrying some 300 kilograms of cannabis sativa destined to be taken to neighboring Greece. But police could not arrest five persons accompanying the drugs, who left helped from the night and the mountainous area there.
In Tirana police also arrested Manjola Prifti, widow of Fatmir Rama, or Miri I Xhikes, who was killed in 2003. She was sentenced to imprisonment from the Italian courts for participation in international drug trafficking.
While another alleged fugitive Albanian mafia boss, Kujtim “Timmy” Lika, was arrested last week in Toronto, Canada.
Lika was on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)’s ‘Most Wanted’ list for “his participation in an international drug smuggling ring and criminal enterprise organization.” The FBI started investigating him in late 2003 and in 2009 he was indicted by the District Court of New Jersey.
Toronto police have been searching for Lika since he arrived in Canada that year with two associates. The three men were on the run from the US authorities following a four-year sting dubbed “Operation Black Eagle,” after the Albanian flag. The authorities were examining New Jersey and New York-based Balkan organized crime groups.