Albanian authorities together with Finnish police on Tuesday conducted a large-scale operation and arrested some top leaders and middle management of an Albanian-led criminal network operated in Finland, said police in a press release on Wednesday.
The operation was carried out in cooperation with Albanian Special Structure against Corruption and Organized Crime (SPAK) where officers from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Southwestern Finland and Helsinki Police participated in the operation in Albania.
So far, a total of 55 persons have been convicted in different court instances and almost 300 kilograms of drugs seized in the case concerned in Finland.
The criminal investigation was launched in March 2023 when the Southwestern Finland Police Department and the NBI seized over a hundred kilos of amphetamine and cocaine.
At the same time the Helsinki Police Department also seized several dozen kilos of amphetamine in its investigation. It was discovered during the criminal investigation that both of these cases had links to the same criminal network with an Albanian background led from Albania.
The authorities of Finland and the Albanian SPAK set up a joint investigation team (JIT) in late 2023.
“This was necessary because Albanian law does not allow the extradition of Albanian citizens to another country, so international cooperation was needed to bring the perpetrators to justice and stop the criminal activity, says the leader of the JIT,” Detective Chief Inspector Hans Fagerström of the NBI.
The criminal network concerned has operated in Finland, Albania and several other European countries, but its activities have mainly been run from Albania.
It is suspected that the criminal network has delivered, among others, a total of 425 kilos of amphetamine, 34 kilos of cocaine and hundreds of kilos of marijuana to Finland from different European countries since early 2023.
The police have previously published information about the criminal investigations completed in Finland, which have subsequently also led to convictions.
Most of the judgments issued are already final. The criminal investigation and consideration of charges for those who were arrested in this operation in Albania will be conducted by the Albanian authorities.
In 2023, the Southwestern Finland Police Department’s drug crime unit started to investigate an aggravated narcotics offence case where an organisation led by Albanians smuggled amphetamine and cocaine, among others, to Finland from the Netherlands.
It was established during the investigation that a total of 176 kilos of amphetamine, 14 kilos of cocaine and 1,620 Oxydolor 80 mg tablets had been smuggled to Finland between December 2022 and March 2023.
The police seized around 88 kilos of this amphetamine, around nine kilos of the cocaine, and all Oxydolor 80 mg tablets. Nine persons were sentenced to imprisonment for different periods.
The activity was professional; the drugs were smuggled hidden in the structures of a lorry. Persons had also been sent to Finland from abroad to receive the drugs and distribute them further.
In 2024, the Southwestern Finland Police drug crime unit investigated a case involving drug smuggling led by Albanians where around 160 kilos of marijuana were smuggled to Finland. The police seized around 40 kilos of these drugs.
The drugs were smuggled in summer 2024 in postal consignments to Turku. The consignments were again received by persons sent to Finland from abroad, who also distributed the drugs in the country following the instructions given to them. The drugs were mainly distributed in the Helsinki metropolitan area.
In January 2025, the Varsinais-Suomi District Court sentenced seven persons to imprisonment for different periods for the illegal import and distribution of marijuana in Turku.
In connection with the present case, the Helsinki Police Department has detected several drug distribution rings operating in the Helsinki metropolitan area, in particular.
Significant amounts of drugs, mostly amphetamine and marijuana, were seized during the criminal investigations completed in 2023–2025.
On the basis of these investigations, several dozen people have been sentenced to unconditional imprisonment by the District Courts of Helsinki and Eastern Uusimaa.
In early 2023, the police investigated persons with an Albanian background who were suspected of organising large-scale drug trafficking.
As a result of intelligence collection by the police, the number of suspects increased, and two amphetamine seizures of around 40 kilos were made, one in spring 2023 and the other in September that same year.
“It was confirmed during the criminal investigation that separate actors belonging to the network in Finland were directed by the same actors from Albania. We also managed to gather quite strong evidence on the complicity of the responsible persons in drug trafficking to Finland. One of the main organisers was already previously arrested in Serbia based on a European arrest warrant,” said the head of the Helsinki Police investigation, Detective Chief Inspector Markku Juurikkamäki.
- Smuggling
- Gang
- Finland
- Albania
Source: www.dailyfinland.fi
