By 2004 the Balkan wars were officially over and the region seemed to be stabilizing. But mediators and politicians who initially took pride in bringing an end to the Yugoslav wars now were asking themselves if this newfound peace in the Balkans would be sustainable, or if it would devolve into another wave of wrenching violence. Some believed that what had been achieved in the Balkan region had nothing to do with a commitment to the peace process, or to a change of heart among rival leaders with conflicting visions. They feared that greed and violence still hung heavy in...

Most conventional perspectives on organized crime start with the assumption that criminals are “rational” and approach their crimes in the calculating spirit of making money. But are Albanian criminals strategic players motivated by economic payoffs, or are their decisions based on normative-affective considerations? Might organized crime be as much about emotions—hatred, anger, frustration, excitement, and love—as it is about poverty, possession, and wealth?

In 2005, when Sali Berisha became Albania’s prime minister, the Albanian government clamped down on key organized crime figures. Twelve of the largest criminal clans in the country were investigated in 2005, and more than...

The common perception is that Albanian organized crime groups that now play a significant role in the European and American organized crime scene started to develop rapidly after the fall of communism in the early 1990s. By 1999, as a result of the activities of some Albanian criminal groups and the great deal of international attention these groups received, Albanian criminals were considered to be a dangerous breed, posing a significant threat to Western society. In 2000, one of Italy’s top prosecutors, Cataldo Motta, said that Albanian organized crime had become a point of reference for all criminal activity: “Everything...

One of the most common descriptions of the so-called Albanian mafia is that it is a hierarchically structured, clan-based organization resembling the Sicilian mafia and the American La Cosa Nostra (LCN). The myth has it that the typical structure of the Albanian mafia is that of a family clan, referred to as afisor afare. Several mafia families have an executive committee known as abajrakand select a high-ranking member for each family unit. Each unit is led by akrye, or “boss,” who selectskryetar, or “underbosses,” as well as amiq, who acts as a...

Ethnic Albanian organized crime groups are known to be ruthless and unpredictable.¹ Since the early 1990s, violent home invasions, witness intimidation, assaults, kidnappings, decapitations, drive-by shootings, contract killings, and threats to law enforcement agents and prosecutors have been integral parts of the ethnic Albanian modus operandi. Albanian organized crime groups became infamous not only for their disregard for human life, but also for their “code of silence” and alleged loyalty to the members of their criminal organizations. An experienced FBI agent described Albanian criminals as “hot-headed individuals” who will do anything to achieve their ends. “However,” he said, “if an...

Ethnic Albanian organized crime groups have been actively involved in criminal activities such as trafficking of women for sexual exploitation, extortion, and selling and buying illicit firearms. It also appears that they have used cultural values other than valor, mutual aid, and secrecy to justify these crimes, to negate the intent of their actions, and to dehumanize their victims.

Careful examination of the cultural influences behind some common Albanian criminal activities may help to clarify the sensationalized relationship between culture and organized crime. For example, according to traditional Albanian culture, male honor is closely linked to the possession of firearms...

Albanian criminal organizations have become more active in the United States and Europe since the mid-1980s. At first, with a few exceptions, these organizations in the United States were involved in low-level crimes, including ATM burglaries, home invasions, and bank robberies. Later, ethnic Albanian offenders affiliated themselves with the established families of La Cosa Nostra (LCN) in New York, acting as low-level participants in activities such as gambling, extortion, violent witness intimidation, and even murder. As Albanian communities became better established in the United States, these criminal groups expanded to lead and control their own organizations, particularly those involved in...