Vlora police reveal details of Radhimë incident: Hotel owner demanded to pay 5 million euros and ordered to leave within 48 hours

Vlora police have arrested five people and declared six others wanted following an armed confrontation that took place around midday on Thursday at a hotel in the Radhimë area.

Details of the operation were announced by the Vlora Police Director at a press conference. According to the investigation, the incident began at around 12:00, when a black “Range Rover” refused to stop at the checkpoint set up in the Alikoka area and continued toward Peshkëpia.

While being pursued by law enforcement officers, the vehicle lost control and went off the road near the Peshkëpia Bridge, hitting the roadside barriers. The driver, Luan Muça, and brothers Klaudio and Mandrit Lleshaj, who are employees of a private security company, were traveling inside it.

As a result of the crash, Luan Muça and Mandrit Lleshaj sustained injuries and were taken to Vlora Regional Hospital for treatment. Official sources confirmed that they are out of danger. During the inspection of the vehicle, police officers discovered and seized a pistol along with a magazine loaded with 16 rounds.

The Vlora police chief added that at around 13:00, another wanted vehicle was intercepted by Fier police officers near the Memorial Interchange. The car was driven by Kosovo citizen Blerim Heta. Inspection of the vehicle revealed damage to the passenger-side window, which is suspected to have been caused by gunfire, as well as three pistol rounds inside it.

Later, at around 16:30, a vehicle, an “Audi A8”, was found engulfed in flames on the Vlora bypass, near the village of Kaninë. It is believed to have been used by the people involved in the case.

Based on the investigation conducted so far, police suspect that Luan Muça and his associates went to the hotel owned by Vasil Bedinaj. They demanded that the owner pay 5 million euros, threatening him with weapons and subjecting him to violence. According to the same version of events, he was given 48 hours to leave Albanian territory.

The authorities also announced that Angjelo Breshani approached Vasil Bedinaj’s vehicle, took the firearm that the latter legally possessed, and fired at the cars of other people who were at the scene.

At the end of the operation, police arrested the following individuals: Luan Muça, 55, from Tirana; Klaudio Lleshaj, 29, from Tirana; Mandrit Lleshaj, 33, from Tirana; Blerim Heta, 40, from Kosovo; and Angjelo Breshani, 29, from Vlora. Six other people remain wanted, along with four vehicles suspected of having been used during the incident.

The investigation is continuing in coordination with the Prosecutor’s Office to fully clarify the circumstances and the responsibility of each of the suspects. The case file will be referred to the prosecution authorities for the criminal offenses of “Extortion through threats for the purpose of obtaining property,” committed as part of a group, and “Unauthorized possession and production of weapons, explosive weapons and ammunition.”