Law enforcement authorities in Italy and Albania take down a network of drug traffickers with support from Eurojust and Europol
A drug trafficking network involving cocaine, cannabis and heroin mainly from Albania to Italy has been busted in a major operation by law enforcement authorities.
The operation was supported by Eurojust and Europol as over 350 officers from Italy and Albania conducted searches in over 31 locations.
As per a statement in a Europol press release from Thursday, January 26, “The criminal groups were allegedly responsible for the large-scale trafficking drugs”.
It added, “Today’s operation is part of a longer-term investigation carried out jointly by the Italian and Albanian authorities, which has already led to the arrest of 62 persons and the seizure of assets worth approximately EUR 1 million (in Italy), as well as to the seizure of huge quantities of drugs”
The statement also said that the operation was monitored in real-time from Eurojust’s coordination centre, while Europol provided operational support on-the-spot by deploying its specialists both to Italy and Albania.
Officials reports state that the case was opened at Eurojust and Europol in 2019.
Eurojust organised two coordination meetings in which representatives of the authorities involved came together to discuss the case, exchange information and agree on further steps.
The Agency also supported the authorities by setting up and funding a joint investigation team (JIT).
Over the course of the investigation, Europol provided in-depth analytical support and expertise, mapping out the different high-profile targets and their criminal activities.
The investigation was supported by the European Commission’s project IPA (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance), which for the first time financially supported the operational activities.
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