BROOKLYN, NY – Redinel Dervishaj, the ringleader of a brutal Albanian extortion racket terrorizing small business owners in Astoria, Queens, was sentenced to 57 years and one day in federal prison today. U.S. District Judge Eric N. Vitaliano handed down the lengthy sentence after a three-week trial in April 2016 found Dervishaj guilty on multiple counts including Hobbs Act extortion conspiracy, attempted extortion, threatening violence, and brandishing a firearm.
The case, brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, along with the FBI and NYPD, exposed a systematic campaign of fear and intimidation aimed at squeezing money out of vulnerable business owners. Between May and November 2013, Dervishaj, along with co-defendants Denis Nikolla and shockingly, NYPD Officer Besnik Llakatura, targeted at least three establishments, demanding monthly “protection” payments in exchange for avoiding violence. The scheme wasn’t about protection; it was about pure, unadulterated greed.
Court filings reveal the chilling details of one extortion attempt against a Queens restaurant owner. Shortly after opening his doors, the victim was approached by Dervishaj, who demanded $4,000 a month for operating in “our neighborhood.” When the owner sought help from Llakatura, believing him to be a law enforcement ally, he unwittingly confided in one of the perpetrators. Llakatura actively discouraged reporting the crime, warning the victim of Dervishaj’s ties to dangerous Albanian organized crime figures, including his brother, Plaurent Dervishaj, then Albania’s most wanted fugitive. The situation escalated when Nikolla and Dervishaj chased the victim at gunpoint, before he escaped in his car. Over five months, the crew extracted $24,000 from the terrified owner.
The extortion didn’t stop there. Dervishaj and Nikolla also targeted a new Astoria nightclub, confronting the owner at a bar. Nikolla held a gun to the victim’s ribs, threatening to harm his family if he didn’t pay. In another case, they attempted to extort the proprietor of two social clubs, demanding $1,000 a week. When the owner refused, he lived in constant fear, eventually abandoning his businesses. Wiretaps authorized by the court revealed the defendants actively coordinated their efforts, even resorting to violence against a friend of one of the victims in an attempt to locate and intimidate him – Dervishaj brutally punched the man multiple times in the face.
Denis Nikolla previously received an 18-year prison sentence on March 10, 2017, for his role in the conspiracy. Besnik Llakatura, the disgraced former NYPD officer, is still awaiting sentencing. Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Rohde, FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney, Jr., and NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill announced the sentence, sending a clear message that such predatory behavior will not be tolerated. This conviction is a significant blow to Albanian organized crime operating in the New York metropolitan area.
The 57-year sentence handed down to Dervishaj represents a considerable victory for federal investigators. While it won’t erase the trauma inflicted upon his victims, it hopefully provides some measure of justice and deters others from engaging in similar criminal activity. The Grimy Times will continue to follow the case of Besnik Llakatura and report on any further developments related to this extortion ring.
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Key Facts
- State: New York
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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