Romanian police dismantle drug ring moving 1.7 tonnes of narcotics across Europe

Multi-county raids across Romania

DIICOT prosecutors and anti-drug police officers carried out 16 search warrants on Monday, 24 August 2026, targeting residential properties and corporate headquarters across Romania. The searches took place in Timișoara, Satu Mare, Oradea, and Câmpulung Moldovenesc, alongside locations in Maramureș, Satu Mare, Timiș, and Mehedinți counties. Investigators opened the criminal case to address charges of establishing an organized criminal group, continuous high-risk and risk drug trafficking, and money laundering. Hearings following the raids were scheduled at the DIICOT Central Structure in Bucharest.

Transport logistics for Albanian trafficking rings

The investigation revealed that the network formed in September 2023, when four men and an international transport company created a pyramid-structured criminal organization. Over time, the ring recruited additional Romanian and foreign members to move narcotics across European borders.

Starting in September 2023, four men and an international transport company formed a pyramid-style organized criminal group, which was subsequently joined by other members, Romanian and foreign citizens, aiming to obtain significant sums of money from procuring and transporting hundreds of kilograms of risk and high-risk drugs from Spain to various European states.

The organization operated as a private logistics provider for Albanian drug traffickers, moving consignments from Spain into Western Europe. Ten additional suspects (nine men and one woman) joined the operational core, bringing the total number of primary suspects under investigation to 15. Five commercial transport firms served as legal fronts. Key figures Vilhelm Stocsek, known as "Vili", and Ioan Vasile Ionce managed vehicle preparations in Romania. Ionce modified heavy transport trucks in a workshop in Rușor, Maramureș county, constructing hidden compartments directly into the floors and structures of semi-trailers.

Command structure and driver oversight

The network was coordinated from Romania by Gheorghe Cristian Măhălean, alias "Matrix". Europol classified Măhălean as a High Value Target in December 2025 following a request from Romanian authorities. Măhălean managed routes, recruited drivers, and assigned modified vehicles without appearing in corporate registration papers or vehicle ownership titles.

Ten other suspects joined the organized criminal group, along with four other commercial companies involved in the criminal network as a legal screen for transporting drugs, with the entire activity supported by another suspect, the partner of one of the leaders.

When foreign law enforcement intercepted shipments, the leaders arranged legal defense for the arrested drivers. By retaining and funding defense lawyers, the leadership monitored judicial proceedings abroad and confirmed whether investigation files contained evidence linking back to the Romanian organizers. Investigators also obtained direct access to the encrypted messaging application used by the leadership to communicate with Albanian distributors.

Intercepted shipments and seized narcotics

Extensive judicial cooperation between 2023 and 2026, coordinated through Eurojust and Europol, linked Romanian investigators with authorities in France, Spain, Italy, and Germany. Intelligence shared by Romanian prosecutors enabled foreign police units to intercept four heavy cargo transports en route.

The four intercepted transports yielded approximately 1,719 kilograms of seized narcotics. The confiscations comprised 1,376.913 kilograms of hashish, 228.219 kilograms of cannabis, and 114 kilograms of cocaine. Judicial authorities estimated the total wholesale value of the confiscated drugs at 9.6 million euros, with retail street value reaching over 25 million euros.