TWO Albanian brothers allegedly built a £335million drug empire from a car wash in the UK
The pair are said to have lived a lavish lifestyle, spending money on luxury flats, supercars and a yacht.
Klevis Hoxhosmani, 37, and Artur Hoxhosmani 42 are remanded in custody in Tirana
The duo are allegedly involved in one of Europe’s largest drug operations
The brothers were known for flaunting their luxury lifestyle on social media
Investigators arrested the duo in August claiming their involvement in one of biggest drug-smuggling operations, which they allegedly ran from their car wash in .
Klevis Hoxhosmani, 37, and his brother, Artur Hoxhosmani 42 reportedly built an empire from trafficking cocaine and used the money to fund their lavish behaviour.
Klevis is believed to be in a relationship with the daughter of a former Albanian minister. The couple frequently flaunt their wealth and power on .
Recent videos shared by the couple include opulent trips to , , and the South of France.
The couple share their luxury way of life, stepping out of cars and throwing extravagant parties on the brother’s yacht in Dubai.
The siblings also own a portfolio of luxury properties in capital, and along the booming Ionian coast, as well as three businesses based in Bournemouth that Companies House has linked to Klevis Hoxhosmani.
But their lavish lifestyle has come crashing down, with their arrest sparking serious questions about the real source of the family’s fortune, according to a .
Officers from Albania’s Special Structure against Corruption and Organised Crime (SPAK), who are leading the investigation, have already taken possession of a yacht, and a fleet of cars including a which lists for more than £140,000.
They claim they have also seized three pistols, two luxury watches, 16 mobile phones and 19 bank cards from the group.
The duo are accused of being members of a major pan-European organized crime group involving at least 16 operatives.
Albanian prosecutors allege that the group was responsible for a 250kg shipment of cocaine seized in in April 2020, which was reportedly en route to the UK.
The entire operation was orchestrated and controlled via an encrypted messaging app, known as ‘Sky ECC’, according to SPAK.
Messages exchanged on the platform allegedly show gang members reacting with horror upon realizing the lucrative narcotics shipment had been seized by authorities.
The drugs were concealed within shipments of everyday goods, such as bags of cocoa beans and boxes of bananas, with other shipments hidden amongst deliveries of timber, the prosecutors claim.
Albanian police believe that “tons of narcotics were transported to ports in Belgium, the Netherlands or overland routes to France and the UK” by lorry drivers employed by legitimate companies.
The pair, who appeared in court in Tirana, Albania’s capital, last month, are remanded in custody awaiting a full trial.
The Hoxhosmani brothers had established themselves in , where residents described them as “neighbours from hell” according to the Daily Mail.
Artur came to the UK in 1999, with his brother following him some years later. By 2013, they were settled in Bournemouth where Klevis was listed as director of the Crystal Hand Carwash.
He was also listed as a director of two other businesses: a tyre shop and Opa Coffee Limited, which is registered to an empty shop near Bournemouth town centre.
Klevis has previous convictions in the UK. In 2014, he admitted to assaulting a woman, for which he was handed a community order and ordered to pay compensation.
Artur is believed to have claimed asylum in the UK using a different date of birth, a tactic supposedly used to avoid detection by the Home Office.
According to court documents, the brothers operated a highly organised network with links across Europe and .
Prosecutors believe they used a string of connections with corrupt port officials to move cocaine from Ecuador and Colombia through Antwerp, Rotterdam and French routes into the UK.
Encrypted messages appear to show the gang referring to the UK as ‘the island” and used nicknames like “Beast’” which investigators say were intended to conceal their identities.
The Albanian police claim that in one exchange, Artur told a contact to “bring money to England,” while another said, “I’ve got all the money in England.”
The group are also accused of using a shadowy money transfer system known as ‘Hawala’ to move vast sums without leaving any trace through banks.
The network’s secret messaging platform was cracked by the Albanian police detectives in 2022.
The encrypted messages uncovered included shipping plans, alerts about customs inspections, and instructions on what to do in case of seizure, according to Albanian authorities.
UK officers from the National Crime Agency are said to be working alongside Albanian prosecutors as part of a Europe-wide crackdown.
Albanian prosecutors said: “This successful investigation led by SPAK is a direct result of close inter-institutional and international cooperation.”
The case comes as Border Force is on track to seize a record volume of Class A drugs for the second year in a row.
