‘I’m Taulant Balla, I need 100,000 euros’: how two fraudsters tried to take 100,000 from Armando Duka

Two young men — Edison Korra, 24, and Orest Balla, 23 — have been arrested in Tirana on suspicion of attempting to defraud Albanian football federation (FSHF) president Armand Duka out of 100,000 euros.

According to published data, the young men contacted Duka introducing themselves as Taulant Balla and demanded the sum in cryptocurrency. Duka suspected a fraud scheme and notified the police, who then intervened to document the case.

Investigation-team sources told journalist Xhensila Kodra that the person asked for the 100,000-euro sum is FSHF chief Armand Duka. The two arrested men introduced themselves as Taulant Balla on the Signal app. The sum was first demanded in cryptocurrency, but it was later agreed it would be handed over in euros.

The same sources explain that the money handover was carried out by undercover agents and the arrest was made red-handed. The handover took place in Elbasan, where the two arrested men live.

The police report was filed by Duka himself, who suspected he had fallen prey to fraud. The message that arrived on his phone from the two arrested men said that, introducing themselves as Taulant Balla, Duka should send the sum of money to the address the two young men had given him, pretending to be acquaintances of Balla.

After the arrest, they refused to give police detailed statements about who is behind them, while the main suspicions fall on Florian Gjergji.

Meanwhile, during the communication Duka told them to get in touch with his son because he does not understand such things about cryptocurrencies. On the phone of the two arrested men, one of the police agents appeared introducing himself as Duka’s son. The undercover agent told the two perpetrators that he did not have the money in cryptocurrency, but would bring it in cash.