At least 29 arrested in operation against the Albanian mafia in Ecuador and Spain

At least 29 people were arrested this Tuesday in a simultaneous operation carried out in Spain is at Ecuador against the Albanian mafia for alleged drug trafficking and money laundering of at least 30 million dollars, according to a report from the Ecuadorian National Police.

Among those detained in the so-called operation ‘Pampa’ there are 18 people in Ecuador and 11 in Spain of Ecuadorian, Spanish, Argentine, Colombian and Chinese nationalities, for their alleged connection with maritime transport operations of cocaine produced in Colombia for Europe through its shipment at ports in Ecuador.

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The operation, the result of a two and a half year investigation, involved the search of 42 properties, of which 33 were in Ecuadorian territory and nine in Spain, where 22 vehicles, 8 weapons, 27 cell phones and 10 electronic devices were found. seized, as well as an amount of money yet to be determined.

As part of the investigation, a total of 2.3 tons of cocaine were previously seized in Ecuador and several European countries.

According to the Ecuadorian Police, the leader of this organization is Albanian Dritan Gjikalinked to Ecuadorian businessman Ruben Chérresmurdered last year after the revelation of a police investigation that pointed to the business network he allegedly maintained with this network of drug trafficking It is money laundry.

Chérres was also involved in the alleged corruption plan in public companies that had his friend as the apparent leader. Danilo Carreirabrother-in-law of the then president Guilherme Lasso (2021-2023) at the moment this plot came to light, a case that catapulted a political trial of the president in the Assembly (Parliament).

According to police investigations, the Albanian ordered medicines from laboratories that produce cocaine in Colombia and coordinated the sale of the merchandise in Europe, with the support of several people who helped him transport the drugs to the border with Ecuador.

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The drugs were then transported by road to various collection centers in the Ecuadorian provinces of Cotopaxi, The rivers It is Guaias where it was stored in large quantities before being surreptitiously introduced into shipments of bananas exported on ships destined for Belgium, Netherlands, Türkiye It is Albania.

O Ecuador Police states that this organization “They had privileged information on maritime foreign trade documents, which made it easier for them to contaminate several containers every week.”.

“Thanks to their profile as successful businessmen, they managed to enter Ecuadorian territory through their companies with money from the sale of the alkaloid in Europe.”, noted the Police.

Likewise, he highlighted that during the period of the investigation it was possible to track the movement of money in Ecuador’s financial system, through several individuals and legal entities who acquired various movable and immovable assets with the aim of laundering a total of 30 million dollars.

Surrounded by Colombia and Peruthe world’s two largest producers of cocaine, Ecuador has become a key point in the drug trafficking mafias who use their ports to try to transport drugs especially to Europe and North Americathe biggest consumers.

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To achieve this, organized crime gangs operating in Ecuador have established links with Mexican drug cartels. Sinaloa It is Jalisco New Generationas well as with the Albanian mafia for shipments to Europe, according to Ecuadorian authorities.

Since the beginning of the year, the president’s government Daniel Noboa decreed the existence in Ecuador of a “internal armed conflict”against organized crime, whose gangs, mainly dedicated to drug trafficking, were declared terrorist groups after a wave of attacks and violence that included a series of riots in prisons with around 200 hostages who managed to be freed and the seizure of a canal broadcast by an armed group.

Source: Elcomercio

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I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.