FLASH
Shkruar nga PamfletiIllegal betting profits are being laundered through the construction of a 28-story building in the heart of Ali Demi, where behind the scheme is Njuland (Lendi) Palaj, a well-known character in police files.
Another scandal shakes the world of construction and politics in Tirana: illegal betting profits are being laundered through the construction of a 28-story building in the heart of Ali Demi, where behind the scheme stands Njuland (Lendi) Palaj, a well-known character from police files, and Tom Doshi, who appears as a silent co-investor in this luxury project that will be built on money laundering and the poverty of citizens.
Lendi Palaj, 28, known as the “brain” of the illegal betting network “333” and “CR7”, has been arrested several times by the police for organizing sports betting, possessing weapons and being involved in armed conflicts, but as always, justice has been lenient towards him. According to sources for “Timoni.al”, although charges have been brought against him for criminal activity, Palaj has been released again, continuing his activity in the shadows and is now on the verge of a dizzying investment: a 28-story tower in Ali Dem, which is expected to be built through a construction company recently registered in the name of his family members and close associates.
Sources close to tax and police authorities confirm that Palaj commits systematic tax evasion, hides real income and does not declare the salaries of his employees at the betting points and premises he controls. The scheme is simple, but sophisticated: the real flow of money from illegal betting is channeled through several fictitious businesses that operate as bars or "fast food", while part of the money is transferred to the construction of a 28-story tower in Ali Dem, where capital from the construction group associated with Tom Doshi is also expected to be included.
The latest police investigations reveal a whole network of people who manage illegal betting in Tirana, where Palaj has always been a key figure. He was arrested earlier during a search of his premises in Xhamllik, on “Sadik Petrela” street, where the police found clear evidence of sports betting activities through mobile phones and encrypted communications with customers. In addition to Palaj, Arsen Zebi, Florian Çela, Ergest Lloci and Erigest Alisha, who were involved in the organization and distribution of betting profits, were also arrested.
However, what is most shocking is the fact that the money earned from these criminal activities is being used to build multi-story structures in Tirana, being laundered through the banking system with forged documents and fictitious declarations of “foreign investments.” This model is the same as that used in recent years by several individuals associated with gambling networks that, after being shut down in 2019, continued their activities secretly under the cover of bars, lounges, and “fast cash” points.
An investigation launched by anti-money laundering structures shows that Lendi Palaj's name is directly linked to several accounts opened in the name of his relatives in Kosovo and North Macedonia, through which several suspicious transfers of hundreds of thousands of euros have been made. These amounts are thought to be used to finance the construction of a 28-story building in Ali Dem; an area where land was purchased at prices below value, paying the owners in cash, without a trace in the banks.
The question that arises is clear: why is a person like Lendi Palaj, with several criminal records, arrests for illegal possession of weapons and involvement in illegal betting, not yet in prison? Are the justice structures part of the chain of protection that guarantees the laundering of millions of euros through construction?
In a normal country, such a person would already be in jail, under investigation for money laundering and financing criminal activities. But in Albania, where crime dresses up in a suit and turns into an investor, Lendi Palaj is preparing to build a tower that will serve as a monument to money laundering in betting and the state's failure to protect citizens.
Witnesses in the Ali Demi area claim that the construction works for the tower are expected to start within this year, while the company that will build it has already secured the documents for a building permit through intermediaries linked to former MP Tom Doshi. This is not just a construction affair, but a frightening signal of how dirty money is taking concrete form in Tirana, through the cooperation of the criminal business with politics.
If the prosecution and SPAK do not intervene now, this 28-story project in Ali Dem will be not only the symbol of a building, but the clearest evidence of the fact that gambling, crime and politics build the palaces of tomorrow in Albania today. /Timoni
Na lodhet me kete lendin, pse nuk permendni edhe te tjeret apo i fshini lajmet e tyre se merni kafen?
Lenti esht nje rrembythje qe po e perdorin derisa ta plasin mren e tja marrin tgjitha
lenti palaj krye rq i ali demit