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Evolution of the Albanian Organized Crime Groups

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EVOLUTION OF THE ALBANIAN ORGANIZED CRIME GROUPS FABIAN ZHILLA BESFORT LAMALLARI Contributors: Altin Hoti Albens Tabaku Fatjon Taipi Robert Gajda Tirana 2016 Research on organized crime in Albania has been very scarce ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS because of the difficulty and dangerousness that they pose in terms of data collection. This research study is the first of its kind. In this context, special thanks go to all the collaborators of this project - the prosecutors, lawyers, judges, representatives of civil society organizations, investigative journalists as well as State Police representatives who had the courage to agree to contribute to this research with their experience. We would also like to thank the Open Society Foundation for Albania for supporting this research study and particularly Executive Director Mr. Andi Dobrushi and Program Manager Ms. Ilda Bakshevani for the coordination, assistance and high-quality feedback in the course of the research but also on the final draft. A significant contribution to the quality of this research study came from reviewer Nita Shala and other reviewers who, because of their profession, asked to remain anonymous. We would also like to thank the Canadian Institute of Technology (CIT) for the expertise it provided and particularly the students of this university for the contribution to the organization and presentation of the research findings. Design & illustrations: Ergys Bejleri Cover Photo: shutterstock/Evdokimov Maxim 2 I EVOLUTION OF THE ALBANIAN ORGANIZED CRIME GROUPS CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY..............................................................................................5 METHODOLOGY..........................................................................................................13 CHAPTER 1.....................................................................................................................17 BEGINNINGS OF CRIMINAL ORGANIZATION IN ALBANIA (1990 - 2003) 1. CRIMINAL STRUCTURE..........................................................................................18 2. GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD.......................................................................................20 3. ARMED GANGS............................................................................................................21 4. CHARACTERISTICS OF CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS IN ALBANIA.......28 CHAPTER 2.....................................................................................................................33 STRUCTURE OF ORGANIZED CRIME (2004-2015) 1. TIME CYCLE OF CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS...............................................43 2. TYPOLOGY OF CRIMINAL NETWORKS...............................................................46 3. CHARACTERISTICS OF CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS.................................53 4. RISK ASSESSMENT / TENDENCIES.....................................................................59 CHAPTER 3.....................................................................................................................63 SOCIAL ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF CRIMINALITY IN ALBANIA (1994–2014) 1. PERIOD 1994-2004..................................................................................................64 2. PERIOD 2004-2014..................................................................................................67 3. SUMMARY....................................................................................................................73 CHAPTER 4....................................................................................................................75 CASE STUDIES 1. HISTORY OF THE LUSHNJA GANG ...................................................................76 2. CASE STUDY OF NARCOTICS TRAFFICKING IN VLORA............................84 3. HISTORY OF ORGANIZED CRIME IN THE DISTRICT OF KORÇA............93 4. TRAFFICKING OF NARCOTICS IN THE NORTH: CRIMINAL NETWORK “OLD PATH”......................................................................104 5. ELBASAN CASE STUDY: KATESHI GANG......................................................113 CHAPTER 5..................................................................................................................121 RECOMMENDATIONS...........................................................................................122 ANNEX...........................................................................................................................123 EVOLUTION OF THE ALBANIAN ORGANIZED CRIME GROUPS I 3 June 08, 2016 – Members of the Çapja family shoot at police in Elbasan. May 20, 2016 – the review of self-declarations by Members of Parliament shows that there are five MPs of the left-wing coalition and five MPs of the right-wing coalition that have criminal records. May 15, 2016 – The Albanian Police declare as wanted the former Director of Road Transport of Saranda, Klemend Balili, known by the media as “Escobar of the Balkans”. April 18, 2016 - Emiliano Shullazi, Blerim Shullazi and Gilmano Dani arrested on charges of “Forcing through blackmail or violence to give out the property” and “destruction of property by explosives”. February 03, 2016 – three people killed and five others wounded in a bar in Elbasan by unidentified persons dressed in police uniforms. January 14, 2015 – Cocaine laboratory discovered in Xibraka, Elbasan. June 24, 2015 – Rapid Intervention Police Officer Ibrahim Basha killed in Lazarat. September 05, 2015 – Socialist MP Grup kicks out MP Armando Prenga for his involvement in an armed incident in the city of Laç. September 08, 2015 – SP MP Arben Ndoka relinquishes his MP mandate for reasons related to a criminal record in Italy. November 26, 2015 – a former MP of the Democratic Christian Party, Mark Frroku, relinquishes his mandate until the completion of a trial relating to some criminal offences in Belgium. January 25, 2014 – Julian Sinanaj, suspect in the execution of 27 paid killings, arrested June 26, 2014 – Mafia-style execution of banker Artan Santo at the former Block area in Tirana. September 09, 2011 – Judge Skerdilajd Konomi loses his life after a TNT explosion in his vehicle in the main street in Vlora. October 25, 2010 – Chair of Tërthorë Commune in Kukës, Remzi Veseli, killed. May 02, 2009 – SP MP Fatmir Xhindi killed near his house in Roskovec, Fier. June 18, 2009 – Chair of Christian Democratic Party in Malësi e Madhe Aleks Keka executed by explosives in his car. ‘Politics’, ‘business’ and ‘organized crime’ – are the key denominators of the above episodes, which, like many other similar ones, have been blows against public safety and a challenge to the state. Such episodes have always been followed by harsh debates, political rhetoric or even political or legal action. Attention has tended to focus closely on the consequences rather than the circumstances that created the space and opportunity for the criminals to use excessive violence. Unfortunately, acts such as the above are not a new phenomenon; executions from bullets, explosives or beheadings by criminal gangs have happened previously and have left their mark on the collective memory. However, in Albania, history continues to repeat itself. In December 2015, Albania approved one of the harshest criminal laws in Europe against the involvement of incriminated persons in politics and decision-making. The so-called law on “decriminalization” was an effort to correct a phenomenon that had flourished because of the favourable terrain created over the years in this country. In order to better understand these factors and the nature of criminal organizations in Albania, from their emergence to the present day, we collected, processed and analysed qualitative and quantitative data of a social, economic and political nature, from 1990 to date. From a review of a considerable number of judicial decisions from the courts of different districts, instances and periods, we were able to provide a clear overview of the emergence, development and sophistication of 50 organized criminal structures operating in the form of armed gangs, criminal organizations and structured groups. Various experts such as judges, prosecutors, lawyers, police officers and investigative journalists provided their views on the nature and features of the different criminal organizations. This research, which was carried out on a national basis, is supported by five case studies of criminal organizations operating in different localities and periods. 4 I EVOLUTION OF THE ALBANIAN ORGANIZED CRIME GROUPS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The objective of this research is to highlight the emergence and evolution of organized criminal structures during the period 1990-2015 through a better understanding of the typology of Albanian criminal organizations, from their emergence at the beginning of the 1990s. This research aims to show the degree of sophistication of organized crime and the current situation in some of the country’s main cities. The research study also identifies and analyses some of the economic and social factors that expose Albanian society to organized crime. This study is essential to further research in this field but also serves as an analytical platform to inform policies that fight organized crime at the national and international level. This study comes at a critical moment with the “transition” that the rule of law is going through in Albania, such as the approval of the constitutional package of justice reform and the need to approve over 40 other laws in support of the reform. Recently approved have been “On the
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