Inside the cocaine trafficking scheme: How the network was uncovered by Operation "Bridge"

The show "Në Shënjestër" by journalist Klodiana Lala on News24, brought details from the "Ura" operation file, which unravels the figure of Elvis Doçi, known by the nickname "Visi i Pojës" with residence in the city of Durrës, who had surprisingly created interesting connections with drug cartels in South America, which constantly supplied him with narcotics, which he then negotiated mainly in Italian markets.

Justice associate Nexhmedin Dumani has dissected the figure of Elvis Doçi, describing him as an excellent negotiator in the cocaine trade.

He says that the Visi i Poja controlled large parts of the drug market in Germany, especially in Hamburg, while the drugs came mainly from Colombia, passing through Calabria.

Dumani says that Doçi was the leader of a large group of members who worked for him and responded to the orders he gave them.

"Nuredin Dumani has revealed that in the Albanian criminal environment there is no one else like Elvis Doçi, known as 'Visi i Pojës'."

'Yes, I identify this person very well. I know him by the name Visi. I have known him for years, since he was a child. Visi is a very good negotiator for heroin trafficking. Then from heroin he started with cocaine. I have not heard him call about heroin, while I have heard about cocaine.

Visi i Poja is the son of Xhevdet Troplini's sister, whose name is Poja.

"The latter is a former convict for heroin trafficking nearly two decades ago, but who has now become a businessman," Nexhmedin Dumani's testimony states, according to the investigative file.

But just like in the identification of many other characters in the criminal world in Albania, in these episodes of drug trafficking, the one who would provide interesting information about Visi i Poja himself would be Nuredin Dumani.

A controversial crime figure, who has acted as a hired killer on behalf of many criminal organizations, now in the role of a collaborator of justice, due to his acquaintance with the character of Visit of Poja, dissected the latter and the way he operated.

The justice associate who said he knows Visin of Poja very well and is a very good cocaine negotiator.

' I don't know his name but I know him by the name Vis. I've known him for years, since he was little, since he was 16-17 years old. Visi was initially a very good negotiator for heroin trafficking. We're talking from 2010 to 2013. He was part of a very large group, which is Xlevdet Troplini's group.'

This group, according to the justice associate, had been able to take command in several operational areas and had become very powerful in the Durrës area where it maintained an admirable position and was now dealing only in cocaine and no longer dealing in heroin.

"In recent years, Xhevdet Troplini's group has been the largest, at least in Durrës, for cocaine and heroin trafficking and for murders. Not those for hire."

After 2013, he quit heroin because it didn't have much value and turned to cocaine.

"I heard him talk about tons of cocaine," Nexhmedin Dumani's testimony states.

The collaborator also spoke about the strong ties that the organization led by Elvis Doçi had in South America.

From there, they would then bring quality cocaine to Europe, a line that had provided them with considerable income and had made them leaders to whom many other criminal organizations referred when they needed work.

"In Hamburg, Germany, it has almost taken over the entire city.

The drugs that came to Calabria came from Colombia. In Durrës they paid 150 thousand euros a month for their physical security. Miri (Troplin's son) once told me that they paid people to guard them, with a salary of 500 to 1 thousand euros. They were that powerful.

Although the justice minister considers him the leader of the group, there is no arrest warrant for Troplini.

According to Nuredin Dumani, Elvis Doçi entered the drug trade very quickly, from a young age, becoming a skilled broker, showing outstanding skills in this genre.

Elvis Doçi's name first appeared on the show "Në shijnestr" when it was learned through documents that he had been escorted to the police and questioned about the mafia execution of Edison Harizaj, known by the nickname Edison Faqedjeguri.

Edison Harizaj was headed to Durrës to collect a fine that Emiljano Shullazi had allegedly imposed on Xhevdet Troplini, Elvis Doç's uncle, and that very evening he was shot dead.

The second time that Elvis Doçi's name was mentioned in the media was the day when SPAK, as part of an action to crack down on 7 criminal groups, raided his apartment.

In one of the cases, on June 1, 2022, a quantity of drugs was trafficked to Italy through an Opel Astra vehicle, passing through the Port of Brindisi, while in another case, on August 2, 2020, 8 kg of cocaine were delivered to Mola in Bari, with the direct participation of Doçi and Adi Çoba.

According to the investigation, the money gained from drug trafficking was transported to Albania through secure logistical routes, including travel agencies and trusted drivers. Part of the scheme were also corrupt police officials such as Altin Morina, who is suspected of intervening to forge documents or influence the release of those arrested for weapons or drugs.

In international investigations, Orges Molla, linked to Elvis Doçi, also appears on the scene, who turns out to have been the owner of 932 kg of cocaine seized in the port of Naples, arriving from Chile on October 31, 2020. He also turns out to be involved in other cases of trafficking large quantities of hashish and cocaine.

The money earned from drug trafficking has been invested in construction companies and various businesses in Albania, turning the country into a convenient haven for laundering criminal capital. This multidimensional structure, with branches in several European countries and connections to the largest drug groups in the world, makes the “Poja clan” one of the most dangerous organizations in the Balkans and Europe.

A total of 3 million euros and expensive jewelry were found buried in one of the 48-year-old's properties.

But despite these movements, he had continued his life quietly, without being disturbed by anyone.

It is even said that in recent years, it had managed to extend its tentacles into businesses and have influence even in political circles.

An operation by the Special Prosecution and the Italian Antimafia led to the arrest of 42 out of 52 important figures in the criminal world operating in both countries. Elvis Doçi managed to escape the handcuffs, but not the arrest warrants, and today two arrest warrants have been signed for him. One by the Bari antimafia and another by SPAK./BW