Tirana Court approves extradition of Gentian Manaj to Italy, arrested in Los Blancos operation

The moment of the arrest of Gentian Manaj by the Albanian Police

 The Tirana Court has decided to allow the extradition to Italy of Gentian Manaj, suspected of being part of an Albanian cartel that trafficked large quantities of drugs from Latin America to Europe.

Manaj, 35, also known as Myzafer, was arrested on September 15 in the capital on account of the international anti-drug police operation codenamed Los Blancos. He was handcuffed following an international warrant by Interpol Rome in Italy after a court in Florence had ordered a "prison arrest" as a security measure for him.

The Tirana Court verdict to extradite Manaj to Italy

Italian justice accuses Manaj of "criminal organization" and "international drug trafficking". Referring to the court decision, provided by Oculus News, through lawyer Manaj opposed the extradition, claiming that he was not identified in relation to the criminal offense. According to the lawyer, the prosecution has presented a crypto-phone profile with the nickname "Bahamas" but has not explained the coincidence with Gentian.

Manaj was one of 5 arrested in Albania from the "Los Blancos" operation, coordinated by Europol, which extended to Italy, Albania, Belgium, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Romania, Hungary, and Ecuador.

Five other Albanians were handcuffed in various European countries. Dritan Rexhepaj, who is in a prison in Ecuador, is suspected to have played an important role in this organization. According to the investigation, the cartel was importing large shipments of cocaine from Latin America, funded by key groups of drug traffickers operating across Europe.