An allegedly corrupt former Albanian Prime Minister has reportedly spent more than £400,000 trying to overturn a ban on entering the UK because of ‘clear links to crime groups’.
Sali Berisha, who served as Albania’s PM from 2005 to 2013 and as president from 1992 to 1997, was put under house arrest in his country while he is investigated for allegedly abusing his office to benefit his son-in-law.
The 79-year-old – who is also the head of the opposition Democratic Party – was charged with corruption last October.
Mr Berisha denied the allegations and claimed they were orchestrated by Edi Rama, the current Prime Minister.
Prosecutors said that if is convicted, he faces a prison sentence of up to 12 years.
The US government in May 2021 and the UK in July 2022 barred Mr Berisha and close family members from entering their countries after these allegations – a decision he has spent a great deal of money fighting against.
He appealed against the exclusion order at a special immigration tribunal.
However, it was rejected because it is the sovereign right of the UK to control entry through its borders.
According to The Telegraph, documents in Albania revealed Mr Berisha has spent more than €500,000 (£417,500) employing lawyers in the UK to fight his ban.
It is alleged he was abusing his post to help his son-in-law, Jamarber Malltezi, buy land in Tirana owned by both private citizens and the defence ministry, and to build 17 apartment buildings on the property.
Mr Berisha and Mr Malltezi have both proclaimed their innocence.
Mr Berisha has been appealing at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission in London over the move by former Home Secretary Priti Patel.
Documents relating to his appeal claim that links between politics and crime in Albania create a ‘permissive environment in which serious criminals and OCGs (organised crime gangs) can operate and benefit from the political protection of corrupt politicians from law enforcement activity’.
The papers also say political protection gives gangs more options to launder money and means Albania can be used as a ‘safe haven from which to operate’.
These gangs can then buy votes or intimidate voters during elections to help politicians, the documents claim.
Government court papers relating to the legal battle revealed that a secret operation has been launched to stop Albanian gangsters flooding the streets of Britian with cocaine and bring down their criminal empires linked to people smuggling and sex trafficking.
Officials at the Foreign Office and Home Office jointly launched ‘Crime State Nexus’ to target organised criminals and the crooked Balkan politicians assisting them.
Albanian gangs were described in the legal documents as an ‘acute threat’ to Britain by being ‘highly prevalent across serious and organised crime’ through their involvement in the UK cocaine market, people smuggling and sex trafficking.
The papers also cited data showing Albanians are by far the biggest foreign nationality in UK prisons, making up in one eight of all incarcerated criminals.
After a spike in 2022 in the number of Albanian nationals arriving in the UK in small boats, the governments of both nations struck an agreement to work together to stop people getting in
The Crime State Nexus project tries to take action against politically exposed people in Albania, which can include banning them from Britain. The basic aim is therefore to break the links between politics, business and illicit activity.
After a spike in 2022 in the number of Albanian nationals arriving in the UK in small boats, the governments of both nations struck an agreement to work together to prevent people from making the journey.
This included placing UK Border Force staff in Tirana airport, the exchange of senior police officers and the creation of a joint migration taskforce.
It is likely this contributed to a 93 per cent drop in Albanians crossing the Channel, down from 12,658 in 2022 to 922 between January 1 and November 29, 2023.
Under the returns agreement, the UK has removed 26,000 people over the last year including nearly 6,000 Albanians, the Foreign Office said.