Land sold for Kushner-backed Albania resort suspected of forged deeds

Albania's anticorruption prosecution agency has opened an investigation into potential document forgery related to a coastal property transaction central to a resort development backed by Jared Kushner. The Special Structure Against Corruption and Organised Crime, known as SPAK, has compiled case files suggesting that deeds to protected coastline were falsified during the April transfer of land to Albania Land Development, the entity managing the Kushner-linked project.

According to the investigation files, Artur Shehu, a businessman based in Miami, served as the seller in the transaction. Prosecutors allege that Shehu and associates used falsified property titles to conceal the origins of funds derived from cocaine trafficking, subsequently investing these proceeds into Albanian real estate. As part of the investigation, authorities have frozen approximately 110 million euros held in a notary account related to the sale.

Shehu's legal representative, Kujtim Cakrani, has categorically denied the allegations, stating that his client is neither involved in drug trafficking nor document falsification and that the land sale was conducted lawfully. Cakrani noted that Shehu's family had held the property since Ottoman times and that his client relocated to the United States in 1998 following gang violence that claimed the lives of family members.

The investigation files, comprising 200 pages, were released concurrently with separate arrest warrants issued against 20 individuals accused of narcotics trafficking and money laundering. Reuters found no evidence suggesting that Kushner or other resort backers possessed knowledge of suspicions regarding Shehu at the time of the land transaction.

The resort project has become a focal point for sustained public protest in Albania. The development is situated on wetlands and beaches along the southern coast that serve as habitat for sea turtles and flamingos. Demonstrations that began in May have expanded beyond opposition to the resort itself, evolving into broader calls for Prime Minister Edi Rama's resignation amid corruption allegations. Recent police actions against protesters resulted in injuries to officers and multiple arrests, though most detainees were subsequently released by the courts.