At least 30 people linked to the Albanian mafia were arrested on Tuesday February 6 during a joint operation by the Ecuadorian and Spanish police. They are accused of drug trafficking and money laundering.
The cocaine was imported by land from Colombia to Ecuador where the gang introduced the drug in containers of bananas destined in particular for Belgium, the Netherlands, Turkey and Albania. The organization used around ten legal companies for its import-export operations and to then launder money from trafficking, particularly in real estate. The network was led by Dritan Gjika, who has not been arrested.