One month of pre-trial detention ordered for five suspects in organised crime and money laundering case

The Basic Court in Pristina has ordered one month of pre-trial detention for five individuals arrested on 9 June during an operation conducted by domestic and international authorities. The court announced that the measure was imposed on D.SH., R.R., B.D., B.I. and I.B., on the grounds that a genuine risk exists that, if released, they "could flee in order to evade criminal responsibility and obstruct the normal course of criminal proceedings." "The court also considers that, if the defendants are released, there is a risk that they would obstruct the course of the criminal proceedings by destroying, concealing, altering or falsifying evidence of criminal offences, or by exerting influence over witnesses," the court's statement read. The operation targeting the suspected Kosovo-based drug trafficking network was carried out on Tuesday morning by the Kosovo Police in cooperation with the Special Prosecution, following a three-year investigation supported by Europol — the European Union's law enforcement agency — and the authorities of Belgium, France and the Netherlands. Codenamed "White Star" (Albanian: Ylli i bardhë), the operation's primary evidence was data obtained from the Sky ECC platform, whose communications were decrypted by European authorities in 2021. The group is suspected of drug trafficking and money laundering. According to the Special Prosecution's case file, since early 2019 the suspects have been involved in the activities of an organised criminal group engaged in "the unauthorised purchase, possession, distribution and sale of narcotics." The file further alleges that the group trafficked cocaine from South American countries; heroin from Iran, Afghanistan and Turkey; and cannabis from Albania, North Macedonia and Spain. According to the investigation, the drugs were transported through haulage companies to Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Germany, Switzerland and other European Union member states. Regarding the money laundering allegations, the Prosecution's case file states that the suspects are believed to have "transferred proceeds derived from criminal activity into various businesses established either by the suspects themselves or by persons close to them." A portion of those funds, according to the Prosecution's document, was converted into movable and immovable assets, including land, houses, apartments and vehicles. Europol announced that the criminal group operated from Kosovo, with its members coordinating international drug trafficking and managing the laundering of illicit proceeds across several European countries. The EU agency's statement noted that since the investigation began — in connection with the Sky ECC platform — 42 individuals have been investigated, 76 searches have been carried out, and assets with a total estimated value of approximately 80 million euros have been seized.