Press Release

Albanian prosecutors and judicial police officers discussed the latest techniques for the investigation of money laundering, with the experts of TRACFIN, which is a special office for the fight against financial crime of the Republic of France, during a 3-day seminar held at the General Prosecution Office.

At the end of the training sessions, in which referred the director of TRACFIN, Mr. Jean-Baptiste Carpentier and the French magistrate, Mr. Letocart, heads of the Albanian public institutions and the Ambassador of France, Mr. Bernard Fitoussi, it was highlighted the importance of strengthening the cooperation and training for this specific type of crime.

The director of Cabinet at the General Prosecution Office, Mr. Gilbert Galanxhi, at the conclusions of the training said that the Albanian Prosecution Office has prioritized the fight against organized crime and corruption, which are closely related to money laundering. Borrowing a familiar American expression, he emphasized that the Albanian Prosecution Office’s motto is precisely "follow the money" (in Albanian: "investigate the movement of money").

The French Ambassador, Mr. Fitoussi said that no country is immune from corruption and money laundering. But the will and mechanisms to combat money laundering are what distinguishes countries from each other. In this context, he praised the ongoing efforts of the Albanian Prosecution Office in particular and Albanian state in general, in the fight against corruption and also expressed the utmost commitment of France to assist Albania toward European Union.

The General Director in charge of State Police, Mr. Haki Çako, made a presentation to summarize the role of police in a joint investigation with the Prosecution Office on the cases of money laundering and corruption, in which he highlighted a growing cooperation to combat such cases.

The General Director of the Directorate for the Prevention of Money Laundering, Mr. Genti Gazheli, following the line of national and international institutional cooperation, said that the number of cases recorded has significantly increased and at the State Police are referred issues that require a thorough investigation.

3-day training, organized through the mediation of the French Embassy, had as a main aim that the Albanian magistrates have a vision of these procedures for the investigation of money laundering, as those are developed in France.

This meeting represents the last module of the training cycle on "Combating money laundering", launched in 2013 and is part of the organizations within the bilateral technical cooperation.