Three other people are facing criminal proceedings, while two more have been declared wanted.

Investigators, working with the prosecution, are continuing inquiries to establish the full circumstances of the alleged offences, identify other people involved and bring them before the law.

The case has been referred to the prosecution on charges including attempted murder of a police officer, organizing or participating in unlawful gatherings, disturbing public order, resisting police, violating regulations on explosive and flammable substances, obstructing traffic, arson and the unlawful possession or manufacture of explosive weapons and ammunition.

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Police said the arrests followed investigative and procedural actions carried out under the direction of the prosecution service.

Police also arrested a suspect for allegedly breaching a house-arrest order imposed in connection with a theft case. He is suspected of involvement in unlawful acts during the Oct. 24 protest, police said.

During a search of another suspect’s home, officers found and seized a quantity of suspected cannabis, which was taken as evidence, according to the police statement.

Investigations are continuing under the direction of the prosecution service to establish the full circumstances of the alleged offences, identify other people involved and bring them to justice.

The case files have been referred to the prosecution service for further action.

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Protesters threw stones, smashed windows at the Court of Appeal building on Elbasan Road and set fire to rubbish bins at several intersections across the capital.

Police responded by using tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowds.

Several protesters were also detained by police, according to reports.

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The Tirana Local Police Directorate on Wednesday said the arrests followed investigative and procedural actions related to a protest held on Tuesday evening near the prime minister’s office.

The 14 people were arrested at the scene, while criminal proceedings were initiated against the three others without detention, police said.

According to police, at around 8 p.m. on Sept. 1, a group of protesters gathered on Ismail Qemali Street, on the southern side of the prime minister’s office, blocking access to and from the building while senior state officials were present.

Police officers formed a security cordon to prevent the protesters from entering further into the designated security perimeter.

Police said the protesters remained on Ismail Qemali Street, in front of the prime minister’s office, for about 30 minutes despite repeated appeals over loudspeakers to disperse and clear the road.

Officers also warned the protesters that their actions violated the law, disrupted public order and tranquillity and breached the security perimeter of a high-security state institution. They were also told that the protest was obstructing vehicle traffic and the free movement of senior state officials, police said.

Despite the warnings, the protesters continued to chant and actively resist the police officers deployed as part of the security cordon, according to police.

Police said that when officers moved to disperse the protesters in order to clear the entrances to the prime minister’s office and reopen the road, the protesters actively resisted, sat down in the street and continued blocking the building’s entrance and the road. Some protesters also allegedly struck and pushed police officers.

The case materials were referred to the Tirana Prosecutor’s Office for further action on charges including organising or participating in unlawful gatherings and demonstrations, resisting public-order police officers, disturbing public order and obstructing vehicle traffic, police said.

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The operation stems from a criminal investigation launched in 2020 into a suspected organised crime group accused of large-scale cocaine trafficking and laundering illicit proceeds through investments in Albania.

At special prosecutors’ request, the Special Court against Corruption and Organized Crime ordered the detention of 10 Albanian nationals. Authorities are also seeking two additional suspects believed to be in Albania, while seven others under investigation are thought to be abroad.

According to prosecutors, the network operated between 2019 and 2021 across Latin America, Brazil, Belgium and the Netherlands, and is suspected of trafficking at least 50 tonnes of cocaine.

Investigators said evidence gathered during the probe linked the group to five major cocaine shipments, involving a total of nearly nine tonnes of the drug seized by law enforcement authorities.

SPAK alleges that proceeds from the trafficking operation were transferred to Albania largely in cash before being invested in real estate, corporate holdings and businesses, mainly in the construction, hospitality and consultancy sectors, in an effort to conceal their criminal origin.

The Special Court also ordered the preventive seizure of 491 movable and immovable assets allegedly owned directly or indirectly by the suspects under investigation.

The court also ordered the preventive seizure of assets allegedly linked to the suspects, including company shares and 266 properties such as land, hotels, apartments and parking facilities located in Tirana, Durres, Elbasan, Lezha, Shkodra, Himara and Saranda.

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Police said the suspects, identified by initials, are being investigated for assaulting officers, disturbing public order, arson and resisting police.

Authorities allege they threw Molotov cocktails and pyrotechnics toward police and the building while foreign nationals were inside, causing damage to the property and to 32 municipal waste bins.

Molotov devices and other materials were seized for forensic examination. A 16-year-old was charged, but he was released under investigation, and materials were referred to anti-corruption and anticrime prosecutors regarding an opposition lawmaker on suspicion of organizing or participating in illegal gatherings.

Police said investigations are ongoing.

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Police arrested the suspects on charges including violent assault, destruction of property by arson and resisting arrest.

The police also said that the materials were referred to the Prosecutor’s Office where there were initiated proceedings while several other citizens were declared wanted.

“The protesters initially gathered on “Martyrs of the Nation” boulevard, in front of the government building. Afterwards, they moved towards the Parliament, where throughout the rally, the protesters assaulted police and public buildings with Molotov cocktails, pyrotechnics, and other hard objects”, said the police.

According to the police, 16 police officers were injured. They received medical assistance in hospital and now are out of danger for their lives. /m.q/j.p/p.s./

SPAK said suspects used fraudulent online platforms to persuade Italian and other European victims to invest in cryptocurrencies. Six people were caught in the act and two others detained under court orders, while searches were carried out at 28 locations by investigators and police.

The probe was launched on Jan. 9 after material was submitted by journalists from the Italian investigative programme Le Iene, SPAK said.

Investigators identified a call centre in central Tirana that operated in several European languages and employed security measures to evade detection. Equipment was moved overnight after organisers were alerted, but investigators tracked and seized computer systems, documents and vehicles, including a luxury car, SPAK said.

Investigations are continuing in cooperation with foreign authorities to identify all victims.

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Police said protesters hurled flammable materials and clashed with security forces.

According to police, three officers were injured but are not in life-threatening condition.

Police identified 11 people suspected of illegal acts during the protest. Four men – aged between 36 and 39 – were arrested in flagrante, while criminal proceedings were launched against seven others, including a 16-year-old, police said.

Authorities also opened a criminal case against the Democratic Party’s organisational secretary, accusing him of failing to comply with legal obligations to identify individuals responsible for overseeing the orderly conduct of the gathering, in line with Albania’s law on public rallies.

Police said investigations are underway to identify other individuals who may have been involved. Case files have been referred to the Tirana Prosecutor’s Office for further action.

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Addressing the European People’s Party (EPP) Women’s Forum on Saturday, DP leader also accused the country’s anticorruption body of avoiding cases tied to Prime Minister Edi Rama.

“Albania’s anticorruption prosecution office is being unimaginably widely praised. However, this special prosecution body shuns investigation of any affair that would lead to the narco-dictator,” Berisha claimed.

According to him, SPAK is arresting and sending to prison the leaders of the three main opposition parties only.

“We now have MPs in prison and others under house arrest,” Berisha said, accusing the government of trying to create “an Albania without opposition.”

Concluding, the opposition leader congratulated Archbishop Joan Pelushi on formally taking over as the head of Albania’s Orthodox Church in a ceremony on Sunday, calling his enthronement as a landmark event for the Albanian nation.

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