Albanian police

Forty-one-year-old Lamaj was killed by gunfire from an AK-47 assault rifle after parking his car outside his apartment in the Vasil Shanto neighbourhood of Tirana.

Frroku, a businessman with a history of conflicts with Lamaj, was arrested in Thessaloniki, Greece, one day later and extradited to Albania.

Albanian police detained Frroku at his home in Tirana after parliament gave the nod to the second request from the General Prosecutor to arrest him, this time in connection with the murder of Albanian citizen in Brussels in 1999.

He is expected to appear in the High Court of Albania within 48 hours.

Albanian police on Wednesday said they had arrested 38-year-old Alban Haki Elezi, from the village of Frakull, near the town of Kavaja in central Albania, acting on an Interpol warrant issued by the Italian authorities.

"His arrest was carried out based on a warrant issued by Interpol Rome and a ruling issued by a court in Brescia, on suspicion of terrorist acts," the statement said.

Albania dismantles massive drug network

Experts say that a police operation performed in co-operation with Germany demonstrates Albania's capacity to identify and lead major operations against organised crime groups.

Albanian police officers search a drug laboratory in the village of Xibrake, near Elbasan, on January 15th. [AFP]

Albania's Defence Ministry said that a pilot found dead in Spain on Wednesday, following a crash, appeared to be an instructor at an Albanian airforce base.

Spanish authorities had been chasing the helicopter in the early hours of Tuesday near the mountain town of Cortes de la Frontera in Malaga province.

In a major drugs busting operation near Elbasan, 40 km south of Tirana, police seized more than 19.5 kg of pure cocaine and 20 kg of of chemical elements used to mix the cocaine.

"Our investigation discovered a structured international criminal enterprise with activities from Latin America into the Balkans and Western Europe," police said.

The arrests came after Albanian police on Thursday blocked 270 men, women and children from trying to board ferries in the southern port of Vlora bound for Italy, who would then be transferred to Germany on buses.

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Albanian police said they had arrested two members of a gang who robbed a jewel store in a Tirana mall at the height of the Christmas season last year dressed as Santa Clauses.

The robbers entered the mall dancing and singing, with their guns hidden, but once inside the store they took the weapons out and pointed them at the shopkeeper.

Greek police are investigating reports according to which criminal rings are transporting weapons from Albania to Jihadists involved in Islamic State activities in Syria via Greece, Kathimerini understands.

Albania is recovering from false Ebola alarm after police detained 38 Eritrean immigrants in a mountainous area and arrested two suspected traffickers on Tuesday.