Police officers part of criminal groups/ Lala: Cannabis was cultivated with favoritism from the police

2025-03-03 21:57:00, Kronika CNA

Police officers part of criminal groups/ Lala: Cannabis was cultivated with

Journalist Klodiana Lala, invited to MCN TV, has shared details from the SPAK and AMP operation, which led to the arrest of several officials and former officials of the State Police.

The arrested were linked to a structured criminal group in the Saranda and Gjirokastra areas. Lala said that the main activities of this criminal group are money laundering through real estate investments and cannabis trafficking.

The journalist said that the prosecution has managed to secure strong evidence through wiretaps at Sky ECC. The investigation has revealed that several police officers have offered support to criminals in exchange for large payments.

Lala discovered that drug trafficking is not only carried out by Albanian citizens, but also by foreigners.

“ Members of the State Police, who have been arrested as part of a structured criminal group based in the Saranda and Gjirokastra area, including a former official who was an officer of the special operational force, have been detained. Another person, Erdit Hazizaj, a former officer of the special operational force and candidate for mayor of Roskovec for the “Together We Win” coalition, has been declared wanted. This person is the first to be arrested as a key member of the criminal group led by Kristo Qirici and Eldian Allushaj, two individuals known in the criminal world in Saranda. They are in strong clashes with the family of Aleksandër Sadikaj, who was executed in 2022 with a remote-controlled explosion near TEG. Also arrested were Shkëlzen Ruska, the crime boss in Himara, and Ervis Ali Sinanaj, the crime boss in Lushnje, while Elvis Dervishi, the border police chief in Himara, has been declared wanted. All of these officials and former state police officials worked during the period when the criminal offenses were allegedly committed in the Saranda and Gjirokastra districts, and according to the investigations so far by the special prosecution, they result as active members of the criminal group led by Kristo Qirici.

For the clarification of public opinion, Kristo Qirici is the brother of Edmond Papa, a well-known businessman and owner of a luxury hotel in Saranda, Blu Sky. Edmond Papa was executed in December 2022, in revenge for the murder of Aleksandër Sadikaj, known by the pseudonym Sanço. For this criminal group, investigations have begun at two main moments. Initially, Sky EÇ wiretaps were used, which were made available to the Albanian authorities by the French side. It is suspected that the group's main activity was the trafficking of narcotics, mainly cannabis-sativa, which was cultivated in closed environments with the support and favor of the State Police, ensuring its cooperation.

The investigation has revealed that the money gained from drug trafficking, especially from the cultivation and sale of cannabis, was invested in real estate, such as hotels and resorts mainly in the southern area of ??Albania. The four police officers involved, as I mentioned, used the Sky ECC application. An interesting moment in the investigation is their identification by the Special Prosecution, after they sent accurate and clear data, making identification easy.

For example, one of the officials, Shkelzen Ruska, asked for Kristo Qiric's help to send his father to the hospital, after he was infected with COVID-19 and later died. The prosecution verified this conversation and received the list of hospitalized patients, which resulted in Ruska's father being one of those hospitalized and dying in the hospital. Kristo Qiric sent a message of condolence to the police officer. Also, members of the structured criminal group sent video footage, showing members of the group in premises where cannabis was cultivated. They sent this footage to ensure the progress of the traffic, and then the prosecution verified it. These premises, which turn out to be owned by Eldian Allushaj, were identified as part of the criminal group's activity.

A key part of this investigation is also Erdit Hazizaj, who ran for mayor of Roskovec, and although he did not win, he was arrested and was in direct contact with Kristo Qiric, who asked him for help in avoiding police checks. At one point, he expressed concern about the arrest of several people by the Greek authorities, discussing what they should do in this specific case. Kristo Qiric told him to hope that the arrested would not have much information and discussed various amounts of money, which could reach up to 40 thousand euros as payment for police officers. There have been cases when drug trafficking was not only carried out by Albanian citizens, but also by foreign citizens, such as Bosnians, Italians and others, who were arrested , "said Lala./ CNA