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| Kosovo police arrest suspected Balkan drug boss Naser Kelmendi | Kosovo police arrest suspected Balkan drug boss Naser Kelmendi |
| (3 days later) | |
| Kosovo police have arrested a suspected Balkan drug kingpin who is wanted on an international arrest warrant and blacklisted by US authorities. | Kosovo police have arrested a suspected Balkan drug kingpin who is wanted on an international arrest warrant and blacklisted by US authorities. |
| Naser Kelmendi, 56, is a Kosovo-born ethnic Albanian businessman who police say allegedly runs a major cocaine and heroin organisation from a family-owned hotel in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo. | Naser Kelmendi, 56, is a Kosovo-born ethnic Albanian businessman who police say allegedly runs a major cocaine and heroin organisation from a family-owned hotel in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo. |
| Kelmendi was arrested late on Sunday in Pristina, the Kosovo capital, police spokesman Brahim Sadriu said Monday. A second suspect was arrested for aiding Kelmendi, he said. | Kelmendi was arrested late on Sunday in Pristina, the Kosovo capital, police spokesman Brahim Sadriu said Monday. A second suspect was arrested for aiding Kelmendi, he said. |
| Police also raided two houses believed to have been used by the suspects and confiscated two cars. | Police also raided two houses believed to have been used by the suspects and confiscated two cars. |
| Last year the US treasury put Kelmendi on a list that bars US citizens from doing business with him and allows authorities to freeze any of his US assets. | Last year the US treasury put Kelmendi on a list that bars US citizens from doing business with him and allows authorities to freeze any of his US assets. |
| It was not immediately clear if Kelmendi, who has dual Kosovo and Bosnian citizenship, will be extradited to Bosnia, where authorities want him as part of an investigation into at least six murders, illegal money transfers and drug trafficking. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 but Bosnia does not recognise Kosovo as a state and has no direct contact with it. | It was not immediately clear if Kelmendi, who has dual Kosovo and Bosnian citizenship, will be extradited to Bosnia, where authorities want him as part of an investigation into at least six murders, illegal money transfers and drug trafficking. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 but Bosnia does not recognise Kosovo as a state and has no direct contact with it. |
| In similar cases in the past Kosovo authorities were forced to let suspects free because they could not be extradited. In the most prominent case, Kelmendi's son, Elvis, was arrested by Kosovo police in 2012 based on a Bosnia-issued arrest warrant but was released from police custody. | In similar cases in the past Kosovo authorities were forced to let suspects free because they could not be extradited. In the most prominent case, Kelmendi's son, Elvis, was arrested by Kosovo police in 2012 based on a Bosnia-issued arrest warrant but was released from police custody. |
| The European Union rule of law force that deals with serious crimes in Kosovo detained Elvis Kelmendi immediately after Kosovo police let him go and has kept him in detention awaiting trial for attempted murder. | The European Union rule of law force that deals with serious crimes in Kosovo detained Elvis Kelmendi immediately after Kosovo police let him go and has kept him in detention awaiting trial for attempted murder. |
| The arrest comes as Kosovo seeks to show it is able to fight criminal networks, part of conditions it must meet to eventually join the EU. The former Serbian province has often come under strong criticism for not clamping down on its ethnic Albanian gangsters. | The arrest comes as Kosovo seeks to show it is able to fight criminal networks, part of conditions it must meet to eventually join the EU. The former Serbian province has often come under strong criticism for not clamping down on its ethnic Albanian gangsters. |
| Organised crime flourished in the lawless Balkans during the wars in the 1990s. The area remains a major transit route for smuggling drugs and cigarettes into the 27-nation EU. | Organised crime flourished in the lawless Balkans during the wars in the 1990s. The area remains a major transit route for smuggling drugs and cigarettes into the 27-nation EU. |
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