Europol document sheds light on links between an Albanian criminal group and the Ecuadorian cartel “Los Lobos”

A Europol report highlights how the notorious Ecuadorian cartel “Los Lobos” built an international drug trafficking network extending into Europe, in which an Albanian criminal group also played an important role.

The case file shows that the organization used fruit export companies to cover cocaine shipments, while the narcotics were concealed in containers carrying legitimate cargo that arrived at major European ports.

The document shows that members of the Albanian group regularly traveled to Ecuador to negotiate trafficking deals. Meanwhile, criminal cells based in several European Union countries were involved in organizing logistics and distributing cocaine on the European market.

Investigations have revealed that alerts over suspicious containers led to coordinated operations and significant seizures, while authorities were able to identify sustained cooperation between the Ecuadorian cartel and the Albanian criminal network.

According to the report, this alliance was part of a sophisticated international narcotics trafficking scheme, in which export companies were used as a front to conceal criminal activity and penetrate the European market.