A fresh blow to organized crime emerged from the Malagathe province after a major cocaine trafficking operation linked to the Albanian diaspora surfaced. A reputed Albanian-led network had established one of its key bases near Guayaquil, Ecuador. The multi-agency operation involved the National Police, Customs Surveillance, and Ecuadorian authorities. So far, about thirty suspects have been apprehended, with 18 held in South American countries and 12 in Spain. The alleged group leader, described by Quito authorities as Dritan Gjika, is an Albanian businessman whose ties to the region were uncovered through a yearlong police investigation. He has not been among those arrested. The narrative of the case centers on a sophisticated trafficking chain and the involvement of Gjika in coordinating illicit activities from a European nexus.
Detainees across Ecuador, Spain, Argentina, Colombia, Albania, and China include at least 11 individuals involved in a scheme aimed at shipping cocaine produced in the country to Europe. Investigators traced shipments that moved through Cauca Valley, Colombia, and reached Europe concealed among crates of bananas from multiple Ecuadorian ports. During the operation, authorities seized 3,200 kilograms of a white powder. The scale of the disruption extended to Spain, with seizures in Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia, Seville, Granada, and Cádiz. Cash totaling 400,000 euros was recovered, and a broader freeze extended to land assets valued at more than 13 million euros, including financial products, luxury vehicles, and watches.
Precautionary detention for 12 of those arrested
Ecuadorian justice authorities ordered precautionary detention for twelve detainees. A Tuesday night hearing established charges against fifteen of the eighteen people arrested earlier for alleged involvement in shipments of at least 2.3 tons of cocaine to Europe. A judge issued a preventive detention order for defendants Julio L., Jairo M., John E., Jonathan L., Olmer J., Jesús E., Javier I., Alex Q., Juan Y, after indictments for organized crime were filed. For Yongdeng Z., Andersson C., and Miguel A., the judge ordered house arrest and the use of electronic monitoring bracelets. The prosecutor’s office noted that Héctor P. remained under house arrest, and Evellyn L. was released with weekly appearances before the competent authority and a country-wide travel ban. The judge also kept asset accounts frozen, prohibited the sale of movable and immovable properties, and ordered the confiscation of items seized during searches.
Modus operandi
Investigators described Gjika as coordinating orders from Colombian drug laboratories and overseeing sales of goods in Europe. Once orders were fulfilled, the drugs were transported to Ankara by road and stored in Ecuadorian provinces including Cotopaxi, Los Ríos, and Guayas before being concealed within banana shipments arriving by sea from various ports to Europe, including Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Türkiye, and Albania.
Further findings revealed that the network operated with insider knowledge of maritime trade documentation, enabling the temporary contamination of containers for weeks. The operation leveraged profiles of successful entrepreneurs to launder profits from European drug sales back into Ecuador. Investigators traced money movements through Ecuador’s financial system, noting that both natural and corporate actors were involved. The aim was to launder substantial sums and acquire real estate assets. A Chinese national among those detained played a key role in payments conducted through a system linked to coded invoices in Ecuador.
The explosion of activity followed news that a separate plot to smuggle nearly two tonnes of cocaine through Malaga port had been foiled. One of the thirteen people arrested in that case, a customs officer at Port Complex, was accused of facilitating drug movement from facilities, and a food industry entrepreneur connected to the port reportedly facilitated access through the property network.