Albanian man wished in Italy for ‘involvement in drug trafficking’ arrested within the UK | UK | News | EUROtoday

AN ALBANIAN man wished in Italy to serve a conviction for belonging to an organised crime group concerned in drug trafficking has been arrested within the UK.

Besnik Zekthi, 42, of an unknown handle was introduced earlier than Westminster Magistrates’ Court yesterday for extradition proceedings to start.

Zekthi didn’t consent to be extradited and was remanded into custody forward of one other listening to this month the place a bail software might be thought of.

He was remanded into custody as a consequence of him being “likely to abscond and to offend” and because of the “nature and seriousness of the offence, and due to the fact he has an undisclosed sentence to serve,” in response to a document of the listening to.

Large numbers of Albanian convicted and alleged criminals who’re wished in Italy have been arrested within the UK for extradition prior to now few years.

Albanian crime networks concerned within the provide of cocaine, with hyperlinks to provider cartels in South America, have labored with Italian Mafia on distributing the medicine and shifting them by means of Europe.

Historically, the Albanian crime gangs have additionally used Italian passports and identification paperwork to journey into the UK.

Last 12 months General Pasquale Angelosanto, commander of a particular unit of the Carabinieri that fights Italy’s varied mafia networks, stated Italy’s highly effective Ndrangheta mafia was collaborating with Albanian gangs to make billions of euros a 12 months importing cocaine from South America to Europe.

He stated the Albanian gangs had been capable of get massive shipments although the most important European container ports by means of concealment and corruption.

Also showing within the extradition courtroom on Saturday for an unrelated case was Polish nationwide Artur Pawel Michalak, 49, from Barrow Road, Streatham, south London.

The fugitive is needed in his homeland to serve an undisclosed fraud sentence.

He didn’t consent to extradition and was remanded into custody, as a consequence of having a “lengthy” sentence to serve, forward of an extra listening to this month, the courtroom document stated.