Jan.26, 2010

A Wyckoff man accused of being part of an international narcotics and money-laundering ring has been arrested by authorities in Toronto, the FBI announced Tuesday.

Myfit Dika, 44, was taken into custody after a vehicle stop in Toronto on Monday, said Bryan Travers, an FBI spokesman. Extradition proceedings were expected to begin after Dika’s initial appearance in a Canadian courtroom on Tuesday.

Dika was one of two remaining fugitives still at large after federal authorities charged 26 people for their alleged involvement in an international crime ring that trafficked in narcotics, firearms and stolen property while running a money-laundering operation.

Authorities said the group operated in several North Jersey municipalities as well as in Brooklyn and Staten Island. The ring also allegedly had links to criminal rings in other U.S. cities and in Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia and Canada. Investigators seized more than $500,000 in cash and two planes — one at Lincoln Park Airport in Morris County, the other from an airport in Connecticut — that they believe the group used to carry drugs.

Dika and the last remaining fugitive linked to the ring, Kujtim Lika of Little Falls, were featured in an episode of “America’s Most Wanted,” on the Fox network, in November. Travers said tips from viewers helped lead to Dika’s arrest.

Kevin Cruise, the acting special agent in charge of the FBI’s Newark division, said close cooperation with authorities in Albania, Canada and the Netherlands made Dika’s arrest possible.

“It’s very difficult to hide when you are being hunted virtually everywhere in the world,” he said.