Overview
- Case files dated June 12 and reported on July 11 identify Miami-based businessman Artur Shehu as the seller of an April land parcel and say investigators suspect the ownership deeds were forged and the sale involved laundering of cocaine proceeds.
- Prosecutors ordered about €110 million from the transaction frozen in a notary account and have sought an arrest warrant for Shehu, who denies the allegations and is believed to be in Miami.
- The documents link the scheme to alleged South American cocaine trafficking and say funds were laundered through real estate, while SPAK has not accused Jared Kushner, Sazan Real Estate Development or other project investors of wrongdoing.
- Villagers from Zvernec who have long contested the land say they hold title deeds and tax records that support their claims, and protesters known as the 'Flamingo Revolution' have held nightly rallies demanding a halt to the development.
- The frozen funds and criminal probe could pause the resort, invite court injunctions, deepen political pressure on the Albanian government and draw sharper EU scrutiny of the country’s environmental and rule‑of‑law commitments.