A 47-year-old Albanian man was gunned down on Monday night in the Agios Panteleimonas area of Athens by unidentified assailants. The victim, identified as Bashimi, also known as Artur Turabi, was originally from Gjirokastër, Albania, and had a long criminal record in both Albania and Greece.
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| Artur/Bashkim Turabi |
Family Ties to High-Profile Criminal Case
Media outlets in Albania report that the victim’s brother, Marsel Bashimi (also known as Marsel Shkurtaj and Marsel Gozhita, aged 38), is a well-known figure with a heavy criminal record in both countries.
Marsel Bashimi was arrested in July 2022 alongside Bledar Jambelli and Kristaq Leci in Greece over an armed incident. Both Jambelli and Leci are prime suspects in the 2017 assassination of Albanian police officer Artan Cuku, who was killed in front of his home in Tirana.
A Long Trail of Criminal Activity
The victim’s brother, Marsel, has been repeatedly arrested over the years for violent crimes, robberies, drug-related offenses, and weapons violations. His criminal record spans nearly two decades:
In Albania:
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November 2014 – Arrested for a violent robbery against a 20-year-old woman in Lazarat, where he threatened her with a knife and stole her phone.
In Greece:
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June 14, 2007 – Arrested in Filat for violations of immigration law.
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July 16, 2009 – Arrested in Athens with nine others for theft, armed robbery, drug possession with intent to distribute, and participation in a criminal organization.
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August 26, 2013 – Arrested in Trikala for deportation after being deemed a threat to public order.
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August 4, 2019 – Charged with document forgery after presenting a suspicious ID.
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August 11, 2019 – Charged with weapons violations when police found a pistol and a folding knife in his possession.
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August 27, 2021 – Again charged for weapons offenses after throwing a knife into a trash bin during a police check on Mihail Voda Street.
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January 21, 2022 – Charged once more for possession of a knife.
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February 10, 2022 – Charged with attempted murder and assaulting justice officials after stabbing a man in the leg and attempting to strike his neck and chest during a dispute. He later attacked officers attempting to arrest him.
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February 11, 2022 – Implicated in a major criminal case involving a 41-member pickpocketing network that operated across Athens, targeting passengers in metro stations, buses, and trolleybuses.
Ongoing Investigation
Greek authorities are investigating the circumstances of Monday’s shooting. While the motive remains unclear, police suspect that the killing may be linked to criminal rivalries and the victim’s underworld connections.
The murder highlights once again the deep entanglement of organized crime networks between Albania and Greece, often involving violent incidents, cross-border fugitives, and high-profile cases of law enforcement killings.