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Albanian police arrest 14, seeks more in marijuana-growing village

Associated Press
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An Albanian police officer takes position on the rooftop of a house during an operation at the village of Lazarat, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of Tirana, Wednesday, June 24, 2015. Dozens of Albanian police, backed up by two army helicopters, have been deployed to a major illegal marijuana-growing village after gunmen fatally shot one policeman and wounded two others on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Hektor Pustina) (The Associated Press)

Albanian police detain a man during an operation in the village of Lazarat, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of Tirana, Wednesday, June 24, 2015. Dozens of Albanian police, backed up by two army helicopters, have been deployed to a major illegal marijuana-growing village after gunmen fatally shot one policeman and wounded two others on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Hektor Pustina) (The Associated Press)

Albanian police forces operate at the village of Lazarat, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of Tirana, Wednesday, June 24, 2015. Dozens of Albanian police, backed up by two army helicopters, have been deployed to a major illegal marijuana-growing village after gunmen fatally shot one policeman and wounded two others on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Hektor Pustina) (The Associated Press)

Hundreds of police officers are checking houses in a marijuana-growing village in southern Albania a day after gunmen fatally shot a policeman and wounded two others during a shootout.

Police spokesman Ardi Bita said Thursday 14 out of 21 main suspects have been detained. Police resumed searching houses in the morning "without meeting resistance" in Lazarat, 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of the capital, Tirana.

Wednesday's shootout came after police stopped a car transporting weapons and arrested the driver in an operation to find suspects who had shot at policemen stationed in the village overnight.

Lazarat came to prominence last year after a five-day police siege in which special police forces with armored personnel carriers came under intense fire with automatic weapons and rocket launchers from local homes.