Customs officers at the Bozhaj border crossing, which faces Albania’s Hani i Hotit post, stopped an attempt to smuggle about 500 kilograms of marijuana on Sunday 17 September 2023.[1] Montenegro’s Police Directorate said the drug came from Albania and was bound for the European Union, and that customs system indicators and alarms flagged the consignment.[1] The marijuana was hidden in the freight area of a truck with Albanian licence plates, sealed with customs stamps.[1] The packages found in the truck were sent for further analysis.[1] Montenegrin police said the seizure was made under customs authorisation, using customs data analysis and methods.[2]

In a separate Albanian police statement, officers identified the truck as a Renault driven by a man from Durrës, travelling with his father, and loaded with planks and pallets bound for Austria.[3] The Albanian police put the quantity at about 300 kilograms of cannabis sativa, divided into 180 packages, and communicated no confirmation whether the two men were arrested by the Montenegrin authorities.[3] Albanian and Montenegrin police were conducting joint investigative actions to document the case.[3]

Outgoing Prime Minister Dritan Abazović called the interception a clear success for the Customs Directorate and the Police Directorate, in a post on Facebook.[2] Abazović said Montenegro led European countries in the fight against drug trafficking.[1]

In May 2025 Albania’s police oversight agency arrested three police officers and a customs officer at Hani i Hotit on abuse-of-office charges over letting the truck leave Albania without regular checks.[4] The Albanian investigators put the quantity in that truck at 442.084 kilograms of suspected cannabis sativa, found when Montenegrin police stopped it at Bozaj on 17 September 2023.[4]