BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European police forces have dismantled a violent Albanian drug trafficking network that spanned Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, the Europol police body said on Friday.
Europol worked with police in the three countries to bring down the network, resulting in 35 suspects being arrested and more than 1 million euros ($1.1 million) of cash seized.
“The criminal network is allegedly responsible for the large-scale trafficking of cocaine and cannabis from South America to Europe and its further distribution across the European Union,” Europol said.
“They are also known for the use of violence, including episodes of torture and kidnapping for the purpose of extortion.”
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(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Alison Williams)
