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Posted on 12/30/2002 6:29:30 AM PST by Destro
Albanian crime gangs target South Wales
Dec 27 2002
Catrin Williams Catrin.Williams@Wme.Co.Uk, The Western Mail
CRIMINAL Albanian gangs are attempting to gain a foothold in South Wales.
The Eastern European criminals are trying to cash in on human and drugs trafficking in a bid to tighten their grip on Britain.
They are going head to head with London's established Turkish networks to control drug smuggling, illegal immigration and prostitution. But there is now intelligence to suggest they may be aiming to set up rings in Cardiff, as well as Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Det Supt Graham Davies, of South Wales Police, said, "This information has come to light following a strategic assessment by NCIS, who have identified that Eastern European criminal gangs are active not just in South Wales but throughout the UK."
The national criminal intelligence service warned three years ago that Albanian organised crime gangs were moving across Western Europe, after evidence suggested they had established their influence in Germany, Switzerland, Greece and Italy.
The NCIS says the gangs' power is betrayed by the fact they took control of Milan's criminal underworld within two years, after pushing out local mafias.
Albanians and Kosovan Albanians criminals started arriving legally and illegally in the UK two years ago, displaced by the Balkans conflict and working as the "muscle" for Turkish gangs. Now the NCIS says they may be challenging the Turks for control over the multi-million pound heroin and cocaine market.
They are forcing young women into prostitution and smuggling illegal immigrants from as far afield as China and Afghanistan into the UK, charging up to £1,500 for the journey between Yugoslavia and the UK alone. They also mastermind kidnappings, extortion, burglaries and muggings.
Two Albanian teenagers were jailed last month for beating Arap Mytak and holding the Essex car wash owner hostage for 48 hours in Epping Forest bound at the wrists and legs. Adriatik Malaj, 18, and Shpetin Lisha, 19, had called his family demanding a £50,000 ransom for his release.
"This was one of the most complex kidnaps in recent years involving criminals who had undertaken a great deal of planning to carry out this offence," said Det Chief Supt John Coles, of Serious and Organised Crime Command, after police rescued the victim from a car boot.
A NCIS spokesman yesterday admitted more work needed to be done to pinpoint the threat and said, "In the intelligence it is quite difficult to know how many are in the UK in detail simply because they are not registered or have registered under a different nationality.
"There is evidence of these problems heading into the UK and definitely into the Cardiff area."
The current impact is low, he said, "but the potential is high".
Earlier this month Home Secretary David Blunkett and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw announced an international effort to deter the spread of Balkan crime syndicates.
Det Supt Davies said,"We are monitoring this situation very closely and targeting it through Operation Tarian, a southern Wales taskforce against the spread of Class A drugs and organised crime."
However, Albanian gangs are notoriously difficult to infiltrate because they operate in small groups bound by a code of silence like the Mafia's.
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The NATO conflict has been over for two and a half years. The UK is now starting to see what the Serbian authorities had to put up with. How long before the Albanians start shooting police in the back?
Where's Jamie Shea?
Speaking of housing projects...which lovely one was it???
In the schools on the Southwest side of Atlanta...the Blacks have some NOT so nice words for albanians who "attend their schools"....first sweet word is Mother...you know the rest...haahaha...
Anyway, Albanian muslims, as a rule, are the bottom of the barrel when it comes to immigrants. We have NOTHING but trouble from them at our social service charity. 90% of them need to be deported en masse.
There was one really nice Albanian gypsy family from Kosovo...they were scared of the other Albanians...they were friends and still are of the Serbian refugees here.
When I went to work as a volunteer for refugees I was so naive about muslims....NO LONGER, NO LONGER....and NOT just because of 9/11. Most of my work had been and still is...for Christians leaving islamic oppression. NOW....ALL OF IT IS.
I will not volunteer for anymore islamics....NOT EVER! Buddist, Hindus...OK...but I just cannot help those folks who would kill us or EXCUSE the killing of Americans... like some Bosnian muslims here did.
A Restive Kosovo, Officially Still Serbian, Squirms Under the Status Quo
Anyway, people who didn't know what they're up against, should probably experience that the KLA is a gang of criminals, pimps and drug runners.
Jihad in the UK
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