European Institutions
Council of the EU and Parliament reach agreement on Directive for information exchange between law enforcement authorities
On 29 November, the Czech Republic Council Presidency and the European Parliament reached provisional agreement on a Directive to revise and streamline procedural aspects of information exchange between law enforcement authorities. The Directive, which will still require approval at Council and Parliament level prior to its formal adoption, is targeted to ensure law enforcement authorities have reciprocal access to investigative data in other Member States. Member States will have a single point of contact – an “SPOC” – operational on a 24/7 basis and for urgent cases, information requests must be granted within 8 hours if contained in a database to which the SPOC has direct access, and within 3 days if the SPOC can obtain it from other public authorities or private parties. In all other cases, the requested information should be shared within 7 days. Further, the Europol-managed Secure Information Exchange Network Application (SIENA) will become the default communication channel under the Directive. (link)
Europe-wide Europol operation against high-risk criminal network results in dozens arrested
In the past weeks, an unprecedented international operation – called operation “Desert Light” – involving judicial and law enforcement authorities from 11 countries resulted in the arrest of 49 individuals so far. The suspects were part of a high-risk criminal network considered as one of the most dangerous in the EU, involved in large-scale drug trafficking but also money laundering and illegal enrichment among others.
Those arrests come after parallel investigations in Spain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) into the activities of this network with the support of Europol. Following the success of this operation, the Head of Europol’s Serious Organised Crime Centre – Jari Liukku – underlined the importance of cross-border cooperation between law enforcement and judicial authorities at European and international level. (link)
Country News
- Austria: The Austrian authorities brought down a criminal gang that was impersonating officers from international police agency Interpol through phone scams earlier this month. (link)
- Belgium: On 28 November, Belgian police officers protested in the streets of Brussels, asking for more support from the government over violence against policemen after an officer was stabbed to death in Brussels earlier this month. (link)
- Bulgaria: On 7 November, a Bulgarian Border Police officer was shot dead at the border with Turkey as he was patrolling near a village close to the border. (link)
- Cyprus: In November, the Cypriot police completed a week-long joint training with the Sovereign Base Area (SBA), tackling exercises like a simulated bank robbery and a hostage siege. (link)
- Czech Republic: On 13 November, the Czech police in collaboration with the Ministry of the Interior presented an interactive online map that tracks crimes committed across the country. (link)
- Estonia: On 20 November, two men were arrested for allegedly scamming thousands of investors of up to $575 million through a fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme. This arrest was part of a join operation between Estonian police and the FBI that involved more than 100 officers. (link)
- Ireland: The New Irish Republican Army (IRA) claimed responsibility for a bomb attack on police officers in Northern Ireland that occurred on 17 November. (link)
- Italy: On 15 November, the Italian police arrested 5 members of a neo-Nazi organisation accused of stocking weapons and planning terrorist attacks. (link)
- Latvia: On 21 November, the Latvian public broadcasting pointed out the lack of law enforcement staff in its capital city, Riga: there are more than 1,600 vacancies, which represents nearly 40% of the State Police staff in the city. (link)
- Poland: Earlier this month, members of Poland’s uniformed services – including police officers and border guards – protested in front of the Prime Minister’s office in Warsaw to demand higher pay as inflation reached historical highs in the country. (link)
- Portugal: On 24 November, the Association of Police Professionals (ASPP) held a demonstration in Lisbon, highlighting issues like low salaries for police officers, as well as an overload of work. (link)
- Spain: During the NATO Parliamentary Assembly on 21 November in Madrid, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced that Spanish police will be deployed in Ukraine in the next weeks to help investigate alleged war crimes in the country. (link)
Other News
International border police community meets in Warsaw
At the end of October, Frontex – the European Border and Coast Guard Agency – hosted the 25th International Border Police Conference in Warsaw. This event brought together border and coast guard executives, as well as representatives of EU bodies and international organisations. During this year’s edition, participants discussed contingency plans for border emergencies, as well as the challenges that border and coast guard officers have faced in recent years such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Frontex Executive Director Aija Kalnaja highlighted that in order to address those challenges at operational level, there needs to be enhanced international cooperation and partnership building in border management. (link)
Eurojust coordinated action against massive international investment fraud
On 8 and 9 November, Eurojust and Europol supported a coordinated action against a massive investment fraud involving cryptocurrencies at the request of the Spanish, German and Finnish authorities. During those operations, 15 call centres and 5 suspects from 5 different countries in Europe were arrested. The alleged suspects belong to an organised criminal network and presented themselves as brokers using call centres in several countries, as well as online platforms in order to commit fraud. The investigation results showed that hundreds of thousands of investors all over the world have been victims to this network since 2016, and the damage caused is estimated at €50 million per quarter. (link)
Look Ahead