Police on the Costa del Sol are investigating yet another suspected mafia assassination after discovering the body of an alleged gangster on a beach.
The corpse of Miklovan Danaj, a 30-year-old from Shkodra, in Albania, was found washed up in Marbella on August 24, according to the Guardia Civil.
The news only broke this week after being reported by the Albanian press, finally ending months of uncertainty for his family since his disappearance on May 11.
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Danaj, known in criminal circles as ‘Keli’, was regarded as a significant player in Europe’s drug trafficking networks.
Shortly after he vanished, relatives received a chilling message saying: ‘Miklovani is dead, don’t look for him.’
During the inspection of the scene, officers recovered two identity documents under different names, pointing to the use of false papers to evade authorities.
It was only DNA samples taken from close relatives that confirmed his identity.
Suspected mafia execution
Initial police theories suggest Danaj was kidnapped, assaulted, executed and later dumped at sea, likely the result of a settling of scores between rival clans competing for control of drug routes across the Iberian Peninsula.
Investigations are being carried out in Spain, Albania and other European countries where Albanian organised crime is active.
The Albanian mafia
The case cannot be separated from the wider backdrop of Albanian organised crime, a network of groups operating from Albania, Kosovo and other Albanian-majority territories, notorious for their violence and reach.
Rooted in traditional family clans known as Fis, bound by the Kanun – a centuries-old code that sanctioned loyalty and revenge killings, or gjakmarrja – these groups grew during the communist era by controlling black markets.
With the fall of Enver Hoxha’s regime in the late 1980s, they expanded aggressively abroad.
Danaj is believed to have been part of these international structures, operating from the Costa del Sol – a region long plagued by clashes between international gangs.
So far, no arrests have been made, though Spanish investigators are coordinating with counterparts in Albania, Italy and the Netherlands.
Authorities continue to warn against speculation while evidence is still being gathered.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
