Albanian-American land seller linked to Kushner-backed resort under investigation for drug trafficking and money laundering
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Albanian prosecutors are probing Artur Shehu, who sold coastal land for a luxury development backed by Jared Kushner, for alleged drug trafficking, money-laundering and falsified financial documents.
Albanian authorities have opened a criminal investigation into Artur Shehu, a Miami-based dual U.S.–Albanian citizen who sold parcels of land slated for a luxury tourism complex on the Adriatic coast. Prosecutors say there is "sufficient evidence" of his involvement in drug-trafficking activity and "sufficient data" indicating he falsified financial documents related to other real-estate projects, according to court filings dated June 10.
Shehu sold the land to Albania Land Development LLC, a vehicle linked to a group of investors that includes Jared Kushner, the former president’s son-in-law. The development plan, announced by Kushner in early 2024, has triggered months of protests in Tirana over concerns that the project would damage protected coastal habitats.
"The probe does not concern any company associated with Mr. Kushner," a spokesperson for Albania's anti-corruption agency SPAK told CBS News.
The Organized Crime and Corruption Project reported that a court order froze a bank account holding more than $127 million from the land sale between Shehu and Albania Land Development. A spokesperson for the Special Court Against Corruption and Organized Crime confirmed the existence of the order but said the case remains in the preliminary investigation stage and the document cannot be released.
Shehu, who appeared on an Albanian television program last month, claimed his ownership of the land was "undisputed" and said he sold it through an unnamed intermediary, adding that he did not know the ultimate buyer.
Local residents have long contested Shehu’s title to the property, and the prime minister’s office says the legal challenge continues. The ownership structure of Albania Land Development involves several shell companies, including Sazan Real Estate Development LLC, incorporated in Qatar.
Spokespersons for Kushner’s investment firm Affinity Partners and for Sazan Real Estate Development declined to comment on the investigations.
