Five cases of extensive drug smuggling to Iceland in recent years, involving 20 kilos of powerful amphetamines, can be traced back to the Lithuanian city Kaunas and neighboring towns. The local media recently reported on the drug production.
“Every time we write about the drug production of the mafia in Kaunas and in the neighboring towns almost all the papers are taken from the shelves of the sales outlets the same day that they are published,” Giedré Goriené, the editor of the Lithuanian weekly Karstas Komentaras told Fréttabladid.
“We get many different answers when we ask why the papers disappear from the shelves, but we know that threats towards the storekeepers are the biggest factor,” Goriené added.
Karstas Komentaras’ articles about drug production in an apartment complex in Domeikava, near Kaunas, published last week, have received considerable attention. The articles feature the story of a former police woman who has tried for three years to have the police stop the drug production in the building.
“The only thing we can do is to continue reporting on the events. It is not only unusual that the drug production continues as it is sheltered by corrupted police, but also dangerous for the global community as the mafia sells the drugs all over the world and uses violence to gain a firm foothold,” Goriené said.
Brynjar Níelsson, an advocate of the Supreme Court in Iceland, told Fréttabladid that crime in Iceland is changing quickly and that it is necessary to make use of all clues about international organized crime in the country.
“International crime is setting down roots in this country and we should not be afraid to talk about it,” Níelsson concluded.
