23 arrested in Bosnia on suspicion of ties to world drug kingpin

• Regulation enforcement officers in Bosnia have arrested 23 folks suspected of being a part of a worldwide drug kingpin’s inside circle.
• Europol and Bosnian officers coordinated the arrests on Monday, detaining suspects throughout searches at their residences and different areas.
• Amongst these arrested have been corrupt officers who facilitated the felony actions of the community, in keeping with Europol.

Regulation enforcement officers in Bosnia arrested 23 folks suspected of belonging to a “global drug kingpin’s inner circle,” together with police and safety officers, in a clampdown on felony networks controlling a lot of Europe’s cocaine commerce, authorities stated Tuesday.

Europol, the European Union’s regulation enforcement company, and Bosnian officers stated the suspects have been detained Monday as safety forces searched their houses and different areas. They’re suspected of drug trafficking, cash laundering and different organized crime offenses, officers stated.

“Among the 23 persons arrested yesterday are not only accomplices, but also corrupt officials identified as facilitators of the network’s criminal activities,” Europol stated in an announcement.

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The 23 are suspected of being a part of the “inner circle” of a drug kingpin arrested in 2022 and sentenced to seven years in jail a yr later within the Netherlands, it stated.

Members of the particular police unit of Canton Sarajevo escort an individual arrested in an operation codenamed “Black Tie” in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on April 22, 2024. In a large-scale raid performed in Bosnia and Herzegovina, regulation enforcement officers swarmed the houses and workplaces of 23 individuals suspected to be a part of the ‘inside circle’ of a drug kingpin. (AP Photograph/Armin Durgut)

Police seized weapons, cash, vehicles, laptops and different proof in the course of the raids.

Bosnian authorities had beforehand arrested two different folks and seized $58,000, eight firearms, 11 police radios and money-laundering documentation, Europol stated.

It stated Monday’s arrests have been “another milestone” within the battle in opposition to the alliance of felony networks.

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Brokers from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the FBI additionally participated within the operation, it stated.

In Bosnia, the state safety company SIPA stated authorities briefly froze financial institution accounts belonging to the suspects and halted any monetary transactions.

It stated proof in opposition to the group included encrypted telephone conversations.