Dark side of ‘Europe’s Maldives’ where Brits can bag 77p pints… but resorts are prowled by mafia & human traffickers
A SMALL Balkan nation with crystal-clear waters and rugged mountains is rapidly becoming a favourite with tourists – with over 120,000 Brits visiting each year.
But while the resorts in “Europe’s Maldives” may look idyllic, holidaymakers are being warned of mafia groups who allegedly own luxury hotels to launder vast fortunes from organised crime.
Albania has become increasingly known for its Instagrammable “Albanian Riviera” – but it’s also a backdrop for dozens of mafia-style assassinations.
Albania’s diverse landscape and low-budget prices have made it highly appealing to tourists – with flights to the capital, Tirana, costing as little as £19 on Ryanair.
After a three-hour flight, tourists then often make their own way to the coastline with destinations like Vlore and Ksamil several hours away.
But Albania is also a key drug trafficking route and there are reports that mafia groups have infiltrated tourist hotspots along the Riviera, using resorts and bars to launder money and mask criminal operations.
Albania is a transit country for heroine trafficked from Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan to Europe, according to The Global Organized Crime Index’s 2023 report.
It’s also a transit hub for cocaine smuggled from Latin America into Europe and the UK, the report says.
Over the years, heroin and cocaine processing labs have been discovered in cities like Elbasan, Fier and Tirana.
Albania is also one of the largest producers of cannabis in Europe – with production worth as much as €4.5 billion (£3.85 billion), according to Italian authorities in 2016.
Besides drug trafficking, the main criminal activities attributed to Albanian mafia groups – both domestically and internationally – are human smuggling and trafficking, as well as money laundering.
Criminology Professor Xavier Raufer of Paris-Sorbonne, who has researched Albanian and Italian mafia for decades, told The Sun: “In the whole of Albania, there are maybe 30 big mafia families, with some of their traditions dating back to the Middle Ages.
The author of ‘At the Heart of the Balkan Chaos: The Albanian Mafia’ believes their historical roots make these Albanian groups “true mafias” rather than just “organised crime” networks.
This, he said, makes them more dangerous as they operate “with very strict rules” and “secretly”.
In 2022 alone, Albania witnessed 23 killings, with 10 attributed to mafia-style assassinations.
Notably, the murders of individuals like Erion Çela and Aleksandër Sadikaj in Tirana, and Nazmi Bandula in Shkodra, are unsolved, revealing the mafia’s ability to operate with impunity.
Raufer explained that different mafia clans control various regions, with key areas in the north near Shkodra, the capital Tirana and the south near the Greek border.
“You’ll find these families all over Albania – of course, the most powerful being the one along the sea because it’s better for trafficking,” he said.
People “involved in real estate and tourism are increasingly linked to organised crime”, according to Albania’s crime index report.
Hidden in plain sight
This overlap comes as no surprise to experts.
Raufer noted that those in the mafia often have regular jobs that mask their involvement in criminal activities.
He explained: “No tourist will ever see it. If you go there, you are not even able to guess it because it’s a secret.”
Former Albanian MP Rudina Hajdari told The Sun that she blames Albania’s mafia issues on government corruption.
This “corruption has gotten higher and higher”, she said, explaining that these criminal groups’ links with the government have only strengthened in the past ten years.
Hajdari said that in 2015 Rama’s government passed a law on strategic investments that offered generous tax breaks, including zero income tax for up to 10 years to developers building four- and five-star hotels.
“There have been allegations that many of these hotels in southern Albania were funded by drug traffickers,” she added.
They set up bank accounts through friends or relatives and gradually invest, buying large amounts of property to launder their money, according to Hajdari.
Albanian mafia often pose as legal businesses with employees tasked with securing, transporting and distributing drugs, the crime index report says.
Hajdari explained that these criminal groups are known for bribing the police and being protected by politicians.
In turn, politicians use these large criminal networks to win votes, she explained.
There have even been reports that customs officials in Durres, a key port city in northern Albania, have been discouraged from checking certain vehicles, allowing for the smuggling of drugs in cars, buses and trucks.
In Himare, a southern seaside tourist town, the mayor was arrested last year on corruption charges for allegedly creating fake documents to secure government land for a private tourist resort.
Hajdari said: “There’s a lot of money going into Albania that is primarily dirty.
“The government clearly allows that – whether they think it’s a good idea to invest in tourism, infrastructure or just keep them in power.”
Albania’s government, led by Edi Rama, has come under fire for allegedly turning a blind eye to the mafia – and even being complicit in their activities.
Two of Rama’s former interior ministers have faced scandals over drug trafficking – one jailed, the other forced to resign over a family link.
But Hajdari stressed “this does not in any way reflect Albanian people – Albanians are just the most generous, welcoming, nicest people when people come and travel.”
She concluded: “Albania’s lack of opportunities and high corruption have created the ground for these illegal activities to flourish.”
Despite the murky backdrop, Albania welcomed 11.7 million tourists in 2024 – its tourism sector growing by 8 percent year-on-year and almost doubling since 2019.
Meanwhile, a tiny, uninhabited island named Sazan around 30 minutes off the coast of mainland Albania is set to become a luxury resort.
The request was made by Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of Donald Trump in March 2024.
His plans to turn the island into a holiday resort are estimated to cost €1.4 billion (£1.2 billion).
A government decision regarding the island reads: “The projected investment of ‘Sazan Island Touristic Resort’ of €1.4 billion fulfils the criteria foreseen in the legislation on strategic investments.
“The projected investment fulfils the criteria on the number of jobs as requested by the legislation on strategic investments.
“During the development and operational parts of the investment, the employment of 1,000 people is foreseen.”
The history of the Albania mafia
The Albanian mafia’s rise is rooted in the collapse of communism in Albania during the early 1990s, which led to widespread economic and political instability. With the country facing an economic crisis, some Albanians turned to illicit activities to survive.
It allowed organised crime to flourish, particularly in drug trafficking, smuggling, prostitution and human trafficking. The lack of government control and widespread poverty further aided their expansion.
By the late 1990s and early 2000s, Albanian criminal organisations expanded into Western Europe, especially Italy. They became involved in drug and arms trafficking, often collaborating with other international criminal groups.
Albanian gangs are known for their decentralized structure, operating through multiple clans with strong family ties. They are also known for their brutality and ability to infiltrate legitimate businesses, using corruption to protect their businesses.
The Albanian mafia has a reputation for extreme violence. While not always overt, mafia members can be ruthless in carrying out attacks and murders to maintain control and eliminate rivals within Albania and internationally.
Today, the Albanian mafia has a strong international presence, particularly in Europe and South America. They control a significant portion of the European cocaine market and are involved in various other criminal enterprises.
They have established trafficking networks across North Africa and the Balkans, and have expanded into countries like the UK, Germany, and Ecuador.
The government decision notes that the project will occupy around 562 hectares, of which some 45 hectares will be developed.
The island was once a military base belonging to Italy from 1920 until after World War II, during which the Italian authorities built a lighthouse and naval buildings.