Albania fights organised crime with equipment donated by the European Union

The European project EU4FOCAL has held an official handover ceremony of the forensic equipment delivered by the European Union to Albania with the aim of fighting organised crime. The project aims to improve the fight against organised crime and drug trafficking in the country through proactive investigation methods and intelligence.

The event, which was attended, among others, by representatives of the European Union in Albania and senior Albanian authorities such as the Deputy Minister of Interior, Besfort Lamallari, and the Director General of the Albanian State Police, Muhamet Rrumbullaku, addressed the importance of cooperation against organised crime, which knows no borders.

This team, together with the training provided by a short-term expert DNA database software specialist (CODIS), has enabled the identification of several of the persons involved in crimes, as well as the successful identification of several DNA profiles collected at the scene of the recent crime of businessman Ardian Nikulaj in Shengjin, Albania. The importance of this case and the rapid and successful identification of the alleged perpetrators have been acknowledged by the Albanian authorities, as well as the relevant contribution of the equipment donated by the European Union.

Cooperation against organised crime

EU4FOCAL has also carried out specific training on the processing, consultation and exchange of DNA profiles with other international organisations. This activity is essential for international police cooperation to identify profiles of perpetrators of criminal acts with third countries. EUFOCAL is also assisting in training the Quality Department of the Forensic Institute to start the accreditation process according to Prüm criteria.

The project is developing and implementing training and mentoring activities to strengthen the quality and fingerprinting departments with a view to applying for future accreditation. For this purpose, EU4FOCAL accompanies the Albanian Forensic Institute to accredit the implementation of a quality and fingerprint matching system.

Crime scene work

Thanks to the latest forensic techniques, EU4FOCAL has supported the training of the Albanian State Police Forensic Institution (ASP) to carry out crime scene investigations (CSI). Thus, cooperation with crime scene departments, especially at regional level, is being supported for better execution of their functions, as well as better handling and control of evidence from the moment of its collection at the crime scene to its use in criminal proceedings, ensuring the chain of custody.