Albanian gang dismantled in Belgium; ‘the General’ accused of killing Naim Zyberi captured

A suspected criminal group of Albanian nationals has been hit by Belgium’s Federal Judicial Police as part of a cocaine-trafficking investigation. Eight people were detained, while four were arrested by court order.

The news was published by the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, which reports that the investigation began about a year ago, after authorities received information that an apartment in Berchem, Antwerp, might be storing large quantities of cocaine, A2 CNN reports.

At the center of the investigation was a 48-year-old man, suspected of acting as an intermediary between criminal groups in Albania and Latin America. According to Belgian authorities, he is suspected of coordinating the transport, extraction from the port and distribution of drugs, including through the port of Antwerp. He is also suspected of having contacts with smuggling groups in various European countries and as far as Australia.

Antwerp prosecutor’s office spokesman Kristof Aerts said the 48-year-old is suspected of offering various ways to traffic drugs, being able to secure the help of individuals, including security guards, and directing the groups that extracted the drugs from shipments.

During the investigation, authorities identified several groups dealing with the extraction of cocaine from the port. Earlier this year, police had seized two shipments of 46 and 53 kilograms of cocaine.

Wanted for the high-profile murder of Naim Zyberi

The investigation took another turn in June, when authorities discovered that the main suspect had contacts with a 52-year-old Albanian citizen, internationally wanted for a murder committed in Italy in 1997.

This is Gerd Gjinarari, known by the nickname “the General,” who was arrested in Antwerp by the Belgian Federal Police’s FAST team. According to De Telegraaf, he is suspected of having shot dead Naim Zyberi in 1997, in a hospital in Milan, using a weapon hidden among a bouquet of flowers, in collaboration with Arben Grori. Belgian authorities have started the procedures for his extradition to Italy.

Weapons, ammunition and forgery equipment

On Wednesday, police carried out searches in several areas of Antwerp and Brussels, including Berchem, Deurne, Kapellen, Evere, Sint-Agatha-Berchem and Sint-Joost-ten-Node.

During the searches, firearms and ammunition hidden in special compartments, bulletproof vests, signal-jamming equipment, cash, money-counting machines, forged passports and ID cards, as well as press cards, were seized. Police also found presses and molds suspected of being used to form cocaine blocks.

Eight people were detained during the operation. Six of them appeared before the investigating judge. Four were arrested, one was released with conditions, and another was released.

The investigation, led by the Antwerp Federal Judicial Police under the direction of the investigating judge, continues.

The operation was developed in cooperation with the authorities of several countries and with Europol. As part of the investigation, 37 kilograms of cocaine hidden in a refrigerated container were also seized in Albania.