The Special Prosecutor's Office against Corruption and Organized Crime in Tirana has completed preliminary investigations for criminal proceedings no. 121 of 2021, for the criminal offenses of "Computer Fraud", to the detriment of several persons, in cooperation in the form of a structured criminal group, "Creation of the structured criminal group", provided as a criminal offense by articles 143/b/2, 28/4, 333/a/1 and 334/1 of the Criminal Code.
This proceeding was registered after the Italian judicial authorities, specifically the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic at the Court of Pordenone, Italy, were investigating a criminal group involved in conducting transactions by means of computer fraud, these offenses also provided for in the Albanian criminal legislation , from articles 143/b, 28/4, 33/a and 334 of the Criminal Code. Furthermore, the Special Prosecutor's Office against Corruption and Organized Crime and the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic at the Court of Pordenone, Italy, have signed on 22.04.2021 the creation of a Joint Investigation Team.
From the investigations initially developed by the Prosecutor's Office of Pordenone, Italy, it resulted that the Postal Police Section of Pordenone had identified that a criminal group had a call center located in Tirana (Albania), where it used many operators to contact a large number of people living in Italy. People were contacted by phone, they were offered the online purchase of "Amazon" shares with the untrue promise of earning large and fast sums. At the moment when the informed customer accepted the investment signature, an e-mail was sent to him containing a link through which he was connected to start buying the titles.
In this context, the victim downloaded the "AnyDesk" application according to the caller's instructions, effectively allowing the fraudster to log in as an outsider to his computer and obtain the bank's security codes, allowing him to enter the account numbers directly. banking.
The same fraudsters, with the aim of getting more money from the "buyers", made the victims believe that in order to get possession of the very large sums earned through investment, they must pay some kind of tax/commission according to the presumed rules, set by the European Central Bank since the Trading Company is located in England, that is outside the European Union.
Among other things, the investigations revealed that the criminal group was very careful in order not to be detected, it performed the "AnyDesk" connection on the personal computers of the victims, using an Italian server of the provider Aruba, which in fact guaranteed the concealment the real IP address from which the communication originated, making the server a single "node" for all communications.
The investigation began after the report of the Italian citizen AB on 28.09.2020 (criminal proceedings no. 2041/2020 mod.44), who reported that he had invested a large amount of money (a total of 700,000 euros), because he had withdrawn from an advertisement found on the Internet which had invited him to invest in Amazon stock and which would have provided a huge profit deal. After an interest on his part, the same person has reported that he was contacted by several self-styled "financial intermediaries" who, as part of the same investment proposal, aimed to benefit large sums from multiple financial transfers.
In the denunciation filed by AB, all the methods of fraud suffered are specified in detail, evidencing that he received phone and e-mail contacts with the undersigned "financial operators" with whom he had exchanged various documents.
As a result of the joint investigative activity, it became possible to initially identify the call center and some of the people involved in this illegal activity, according to which it turned out that it had brought this criminal group a total sum of 1,300,000 euros, which it is thought to be only a small fraction of the amount profited by the group as a result of criminal activity.
This criminal group was suspected to have exercised its activity until the months of April or May of 2022, where it also closed the activity of the Call Center, with the address "Don Bosco" street....
After the evidence collected at the request of the Special Prosecutor's Office by the Special Court of First Instance against Corruption and Organized Crime, with decision no. 75 dated 21.10.2022, the coercive security measure of "prison arrest" was initially set ", for the citizen Gilbert Pushani and house arrest for the citizens VA and E. Ç, as suspects of committing the criminal offense of "Computer fraud", in cooperation, in the form of a structured criminal group, Participation in a structured criminal group" , provided by articles 143/b/1, 28/4, 333/a and 334 of the Criminal Code.
This decision was executed by the judicial police on 25.10.2022. Simultaneously with the arrests of the above citizens, on October 25, 2022, the court authorized the control and seizure of the Call Center used by the criminal group located in Tirana - "Dritan Hoxha" Street - "Karavan U2" Complex - floor no. 2.
At the end of the check on the suspects and the check on the call center on "Dritan Hoxha" Street, which at the time of the execution was unoccupied, gave a positive result as it allowed the finding and seizure of 68 personal computers and other materials. considered of special investigative interest.
Based on the extraction of computer data which have been analyzed in detail and confirmed with the reports of convicted persons in Italy, data which fully corresponded, based on verifications carried out by the prosecuting body, with decision no. 92 dated 21.07.2023 of the Special Court of the First Instance for Corruption and Organized Crime, it has been decided to assign the coercive personal security measure "arrest in prison" to the citizens Bruno Çobo, Aldo Pasku, Bruno Gjika, Gjin Shelnishta, Hamit Dobi, Erion Kastrati, Mojsi Zuna, Florjan Bregu, Orland Cani, as well as the coercive personal security measure "house arrest", against citizens Rezarta Ibrahimi, Antoneta (Malo) Pepkolaj, Olta Toçi, Greta Pepa, Silvana Veliu, as suspected of having consumed the elements of the criminal offenses of "Computer Fraud", in collaboration, in the form of a structured criminal group, "Participation in a structured criminal group", provided by articles 143/b/1, 28/4, 333 /a/2 and 334 of the Criminal Code.
These measures were executed on 27.07.2023 for citizens Aldo Pasku, Gjin Shelnishta, Hamit Dobi, Erion Kastrati, Mojsi Zuna, Rezarta Ibrahimi, Olta Toçi, Greta Pepa, Silvana Veliu, on 28.07.2023 for citizen Bruno Gjika and on 15.01.2024 for citizen Antoneta Malo (Pepkolaj).
At the end of the investigation, the existence of a structured international criminal group, with the aim of financial fraud through "online trading" to the detriment of persons residing in Italy, was clearly evidenced.
The investigations carried out afterwards made it possible to ascertain and attribute to the criminal group, numerous episodes of fraud perpetrated against persons residing in the entire territory of Italy, which have given the criminal group a total profit of about 4,700,000 euros, which is suspected to be only a small fraction of the amount the group has benefited from this criminal activity.
The fraud was committed to the detriment of several persons and for this reason the criminal offense of computer fraud was consummated for all the investigated, according to the qualifying circumstance provided by the second paragraph of Article 143/b of the Criminal Code.
The analysis of the elements of the above criminal offenses shows that in this particular case, the citizen Bruno Çobo has completely consumed all the elements of the criminal offense "Computer Fraud", in cooperation, to the detriment of several persons, in the form of a structured criminal group , "Creating a structured criminal group", provided as a criminal offense by articles 143/b/2, 28/4, 333/a/1 and 334/1 of the Criminal Code.
As for citizens Elisa CACI, Gilbert PUSHANI and Valbona ABEDINAJ, Rezarta IBRAHIMI, Aldo PASKU, Bruno GJIKA, Antoneta PEPKOLAJ; Gjin SHELNISHTA, Hamit DOBI, Erion KASTRATI, Olta TOÇI, Orland CANI, Greta PEPA, Silvana VELIU, Mojsi ZUNA and Florjan BREGU, have consumed the elements of the criminal offenses of "Computer Fraud", in collaboration to the detriment of several persons, in the form of to the structured criminal group, "Participation in a structured criminal group", provided by articles 143/b/2, 28/4, 333/a/2 and 334 of the Criminal Code.
After the completion of the preliminary investigations, the Special Prosecutor's Office addressed the Special Court with the request to send the case to trial against the defendants Bruno Çobo, Elisa CACI, Gilbert PUSHANI and Valbona ABEDINAJ, Rezarta IBRAHIMI, Aldo PASKU, Bruno GJIKA, Antoneta PEPKOLAJ; Gjin SHELNISTA, Hamit DOBI, Erion KASTRATI, Olta TOÇI, Orland CANI, Greta PEPA, Silvana VELIU, Mojsi ZUNA and Florjan BREGU according to the above charges.
The investigation shows that other Albanian and foreign persons are also involved in this illegal activity, for whom the investigations continue within the framework of separate criminal proceedings No. 121/1 of 2021, for the same criminal offenses.
Clarification: The request for judgment is part of the criminal prosecution exercise. Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a final decision.