Outlaw biker gangs Hells Angels and Bandidos are expanding operations across Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria and Turkey, reports Europol, EU's police intelligence force.

The announcement speaks of an “extremely rapid drive into South–East Europe” on the part of bikers, alerting that many members of those groups engage in crime.

According to Europol, they are used to engaging in a “multi-crime approach that includes racketeering and extortion, violent crimes such as homicide, grievous bodily harm and organised robbery, fraud and financial crime, as well as trafficking of firearms and explosives, trafficking of human beings for sexual exploitation and drug trafficking.”

Europol states that it is engaged in a big project to help local police combat these criminal phenomena.

It alerts of “new alliances” between biker bands and draws attention to their capacity to engage in drug traffic via the notorious “Balkan Route” starting from Turkey, and crossing Bulgaria and some former Yugoslav republics.

The report also alerts of potential violence related to conflicts for influence among outlaw gangs.

It claims that “Hells Angels are already using diverse strategies in their attempts to build close relationships with influential people and authorities in the region, as well as systematically trying to build a favourable public image through newspaper articles and TV appearances.“

Europol calls on law enforcement agencies throughout Europe to take coordinated and integrated actions, reminding that biker gangs such as the Bandidos and Hells Angels have long been operating in Western Europe.

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