Police in Korca have apprehended two individuals and declared another wanted following the discovery of 30 immigrants being transported illegally through the country.
Officers from the Section for Investigation of Illegal Trafficking and Narcotics in Korce, in collaboration with the Border Police, Traffic Police, and Police stations in Maliq and Pogradec arrested a 20-year-old and declared a 23-year-old wanted after they stoped them near Maliq. They were headed for Tirana where they would then proceed to the border with Kosovo and finally an EU Member State.
29 immigrants were found inside a Benz van who had each paid between EUR 300 and EUR 1300 for transmitting Albania. The driver was found not to have a license and his accomplice escaped.
The second arrest was of a 44 -year-old from Maliq who was stopped in Pogradec. He had one immigrant in his van who had paid him EUR 200 for transit.
Exit previously reported on the methods used for transporting immigrants through the country, including the fact that apartments in Laparke, Tirana are used as a rest point for passengers before they undertake the next stage of the journey.
Over the last few months, there have been arrests of this nature almost every day. Sources for Exit stated that despite this, there are still hundreds of immigrants transitting the country every week via various routes and methods.
Exit sent a freedom of information request to the State Police and the Ministry of the Interior for information on the number of immigrants found in 2020, what happens to them, and if they remain in Albania, where are they but no answer was forthcoming within the legal deadline.
