Albanian mafia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Albanian Mafia or Albanian Organized Crime (OC) are the general terms used for various criminal organizations based in Albania or composed of ethnic-Albanians. Albanian criminals are significantly active in the United States and the European Union (EU) countries, participating in a diverse range of criminal enterprises from human trafficking and prostitution to narcotics and gunrunning. Although the term "mafia" is often used as a description, it does not imply that all Albanian criminal activities are coordinated or regulated by an overarching governing body headquartered in Albania proper, Kosovo or elsewhere. Despite media reports that often have the effect of suggesting an emerging global Albanian mafia "movement" or network, this interpretation has not been substantiated.

[edit] Relationship with the KLA

The nature of the relationship between the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and Albanian organized crime has been a controversial subject. During the 1990s the KLA was viewed by many, including top US government personnel, as a freedom fighting organization struggling for the rights of ethnic Albanians, while others claimed that the KLA was a terrorist group financed and guided by the United States. For example, Senator Joe Lieberman said regarding the KLA: "The United States and the Kosovo Liberation Army stand for the same values and principles...fighting for the KLA is fighting for human rights and American values."^[1]. In 1999 the U.S. Senate Republican Policy Committee accentuated widespread allegations of the KLA's criminal connections, claiming that a "major portion of the KLA finances are derived from [criminal] networks, mainly proceeds from drug trafficking" the report goes on to say that former president Bill Clinton's befriending of the group is "consistent Clinton policy of cultivating relationships with groups known for terrorist violence... in what may be a strategy of attempting to wean away a group from its penchant for violence by adopting its cause as an element of U.S. policy."^[2]

The FBI's prosecution of traditional Italian-American Mob Families in the 1990s weakened the Lucchese Family so greatly that the Rudaj Organization, of the Albanian Mob, were able to take over the Italian organization’s gambling operations in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens. And when the Lucchese Family was run out of the district, the Gambinos, another Italian-American Mafia Family, attempted to take their place before the Albanians could take full control of Astoria's gambling rackets. But the Rudaj Organization was able to hold their own against them, so the Gambinos gave up and accepted the fact that illegal gambling in Astoria was no longer under Italian-American rule.

The Rudaj Organization is the name given to the so-called Albanian mafia in the New York City area in a 44-page indictment unsealed on October 26, 2004. The FBI and Manhattan U.S. Attorney David Kelley announced the arrest of the group's alleged boss, Alex Rudaj, and twenty-six other reputed gang members indicted in connection with racketeering, attempted murder, robbery, extortion, gambling and loan-sharking. Kelley's office said it believes the indictment is the first federal racketeering case in the United States against an alleged organized crime enterprise run by Albanians.^[3] Alex Rudaj and five of his gang members were later convicted of racketeering on January 4, 2006.^[4]

[edit] Albanian Mafia in New York

Noted as the "Rudaj Organization," or as "The Corporation," as the members like to call it, it was run by Alex Rudaj AKA Sander Rudovic AKA Allie boy; Nardino Colotti AKA Lenny; Nikola Dedaj AKA Nicky Nails; Ljusa Nuculovic AKA Louie. There were the top men involved in extortion, racketeering, and illegal gambline throughout Astoria, the Bronx, and Westchester. In the summer of 2006 the men received a minimun of twenty-five years to life sentences in various correctional facilities. Rudaj and Colotti were the top men of "The Corporation." Dedaj was used as the head enforcer to do the fighting and Nuculovic ran gambling in Astoria.

[edit] Notes