Albania’s prime minister secured himself and his Socialist Party an unprecedented fourth term in national elections last May. A key part of his election campaign was a pro-EU and pro-rule of law stance, while he presents himself as a staunch supporter of anti-corruption and anti-drug efforts.
It is characteristic that in September, the government created up to , in order to become “a country where public tenders are 100% free from corruption”.
However, this profile appears to be seeking to change a recent investigation by the investigative journalism network Follow the Money (FTM) which, presenting documents and testimonies, explains how organized crime groups were able to flourish under Rama’s twelve-year “reign” and how this is affecting Europe.
FTM, citing interviews with prosecutors, police and experts, argues among other things that in recent years, the Albanian mafia has expanded its networks abroad, while Rama has done little to limit the influence of criminal organizations. However, the office of the Albanian prime minister dismissed the allegations of corruption as political accusations.
“Vulnerable economy in Albania”
FTM first analyzes that Albania’s economy makes the country vulnerable to organized crime groups, as around 20% of the population lives below the poverty line, around 30% of young people are unemployed and the average salary hovers around 600 euros per month.
According to the network, organized crime groups take advantage of this fact by often investing in cheap real estate to launder money and using local companies as storefronts.
Of course, allegations of corruption have not gone unnoticed by the Albanian population: on Transparency International’s corruption perception index, the country currently ranks 80 out of 180, one of the lowest in Europe.
This is how Albania became a drug hub
As Albanian criminal groups reportedly thrive in their homeland, they have expanded their network across Europe, law enforcement officials told FTM.
In Italy, for example, authorities are seizing an ever-increasing amount of cannabis and hard drugs linked to Albanian criminal groups.
In September Operation Tornado, in Brescia, northern Italy, led to more than 60 arrests. More than 400 police officers took part in a four-year investigation resulting in the seizure of 300 kilograms of cocaine worth more than €60 million.
However, the authorities are thought to have begun to realize the true extent of the Albanian mafia in Europe during the Sky ECC case, when “we discovered that they were very active. They have logistical bases that stretch from Albania to Belgium via Germany,” Niccolo Grateri, an Italian prosecutor specializing in the fight against organized crime, told FTM. A series of trials have convicted more than 1,000 people following a large-scale investigation since 2021 that has seen around €179m seized.
“There are groups that control the ports of Antwerp and Rotterdam,” Grateri said. “They can easily carry several hundred kilograms in a single trip.”
In 2023, Spanish authorities seized a total of 118 tonnes of cocaine – up from just 37 tonnes five years earlier. And according to the UK’s National Crime Agency, Albanian gangs now control much of Britain’s cocaine market – the biggest in Europe.
In its 2024 report, EU law enforcement agency Europol names the Albanian mafia as one of the five most threatening criminal groups in Europe – for both cocaine and cannabis trafficking.
In a similar vein, Fationa Medini, director of the South East Europe Observatory at the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime, warned of the dominance of the Albanian mafia. “They are one of the most threatening mafias in Europe,” he told FTM.
The “business model”
According to FTM, much of the success of Albanian organized crime is explained by its business model – Albanians allegedly cut out the middlemen and settled in producing countries in Latin America, securing better terms and bigger profits.
As the investigation records, documentary filmmaker Matt Shea, who has dealt extensively with Albania’s cocaine trade, spoke to both Colombian cartel leaders and members of the Albanian mafia, and claims that the Albanians offered producers a 50-50 ratio, rather than the “standard” prices per kilo demanded by other local organizations.
As their presence in Latin America strengthens, more drugs are making their way to Europe, is the pattern FTM has identified.
“The EU is turning a blind eye”
Still, while police and prosecutors warn of the growing presence of the Albanian mafia in their countries, FTM accuses Europe of “seeming to turn a blind eye” as voices critical of Rama “remain rare”.
Last Tuesday, the European Commission published its assessment of Albania’s EU accession, saying in a press release that the country had made “unprecedented progress” since last year – although it added in its more detailed report that “corruption remained widespread in vulnerable sectors”.
Rama’s ardent supporters seem to include the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, which “can be explained by the strategic importance of Albania. With its shared border with Greece and a narrow strip of the Adriatic Sea, the tiny country has offered to help the bloc by hosting refugees, for example, or by reopening one of its NATO air bases,” notes FTM.
“Dear Eddie,” von der Leyen said during a visit to Tirana in October 2024. “Albania is well on its way to joining the European Union. Thank you so much for your hard work, commitment and friendship.” Von der Leyen’s messages of support are crucial to Albania’s bid to join the European Union, after the official start of negotiations in July 2022, FTM points out.
