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the european investigator

targeting criminals across borders

EuropeanPoliceOffice,2011 Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. Proofreading:JoGidney,Europol SpecialthankstoinvestigatorsHans-PeterSeewald,Bundespolizei,Innsbruck,Austria;PasqualeSorgon, PoliziadiStato,Pescara,Italy;andBernieGravett,MetropolitanPoliceForce,London,UK,fortheircontributions MoreinformationonEuropolisavailableathttp://www.europol.europa.eu

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

CONTENTS

I nt r o du ct io n

Op e ra t io n al a n a ly sis

Mo bile o ffice On-t h e -spo t su ppo r t

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Fo r e n sic a n d te ch n ica l su ppo r t

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Th e be n e fit s o fe m ploy in g J o in t I nve st iga t io n Te a m a

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

INTRODUCTION

Haveyoueverhadaninvestigationthatcametoadeadend?Perhapstherewasamissing link?Allyourleadslednowhere?Haveyouhadcaseswhereyoursuspectwasworking withinternationalcriminalsacrosstheborder? Europol could have helped you in all of these cases. Europol supports investigators in the27EUcountriestopreventandcombatallformsofseriousinternationalcrimeand terrorism.Europolofficershavenodirectpowersofarrest.Theirtaskistosupportlaw enforcementcolleaguesworkingacrossEuropebygathering,analysinganddisseminatingcriminalintelligenceandcoordinatinginternationalpoliceoperations.Europols partnersusethisinputtoprevent,detectandinvestigatecrimes,andtotrackdownand prosecutethecriminals. EuropoldeliversauniquesetofoperationalservicesfortheEuropeanUnion,actingasthe: s upportcentreforlawenforcementoperations criminalinformationhuband centreforlawenforcementexpertise.

The European investigatorprovidesasuccinctoverviewofhowEUlawenforcementofficerscanbenefitfromEuropolsoperationalsupport.Eachchapterillustratesthedifferent kindofassistanceofferedbyEuropol: Operational analysis Mobileofficeon-the-spotsupport Forensicandtechnicalsupportand T hebenefitsofemployingaJointInvestigationTeam.

IfyouthinkyourinvestigationcouldbenefitfromEuropolsassistance,pleasecontact your Europol national unit.

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

Andrzej Mitura

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

OPERATIONAL ANALYSIS
From an Austrian investigator:

ThefirstreportcameintoourunitattheAustrian FederalPoliceinInnsbrucklateoneNovember evening.Ram-raidershadsmashedopenanelectrical retailer and got away with a large haul of electronic goods. Wesoonstartedtoseeapatternemerging,as fourAustrianelectronicsstoresfromthesame chainweresystematicallyrobbedinexactlythe sameway.Modusoperandi:Thegangtooka stolen vehicle and drove it right through the frontofthestore,sometimesfirstusingastone cuttertodestroytheprotectiveconcretebollardsoutsidetheshop.Duringtheram-raids, uptofivepeoplewouldrushintothestoreand, inunder90seconds,theywouldbagloadsof high-valueelectronicssuchascameras,mobilephones,notebooksandMP3players.Allof thisactionwascapturedbythein-storeCCTV cameras. Basedonevidencegathered,wesoonrealised thatweweredealingwithaLithuanianorganised criminalgroup.Thisinternationallinkprompted us to get Europol involved. We got straight in touch with our Europol national unit to start the process.Webegantheinformationexchangeby providing any intelligence we already had on the gangwhichincludeddataontheirLithuanian mobilephonesbeingusedinAustria.Thisdata wasfedintoEuropolsinformationsystemand Europolsanalysisreportcameback,tellingus therewerelinkstoBelgium,France,Italyand Sweden.Thesuspectshadbeenpolicechecked ontheroadandatbordercrossingsinseveral countriesluckily,theirIDandvehicledocu-

mentdatahadbeenrecordedinmanycases, makingitpossibleforusalltotapintothisinformationthroughEuropol. Europol then hosted an operational meeting where the affected police authorities could discussintelligence,tacticsandfutureoperations. TheLithuanianauthoritieswereobviouslyakey partofthisinternationalteamofinvestigators fromsixcountries. Intelligencerevealedthatthiscriminalgrouphad organiserswhowereinstructedbytheirLithuanianbossesastowhichshopstheyshouldtarget and what they should steal. The organisers wouldthentravelwiththeirsoldierstoselected countries and would visit the stores in advance tocheckthestorelayoutandexactlocationsof the goods they wanted. They carried out the ram-raidsinAustria,Belgium,France,Italyand Swedentargetingthesametwomultinational chainsofelectronicsshops.Thisganghadbeen responsibleforatleast20ram-raidsthroughout Europe,clockingupdamagesaloneestimatedto bearoundEUR1.5million. TheLithuanianauthoritiesgavethehighestprioritytosolvingthiscaseand,asaresult,we plannedourdayofactioninLithuaniaatacoordinationmeetinghostedbyEurojust.OneApril morning,55Lithuanianpoliceofficers,supported bycolleaguesfromAustriaandSweden,carried out16housesearchestocatchthesuspectsand gatherpotentialevidence.TwoEuropolofficers were on the spot to provide further support to the investigators.

Jean Francois Guiot

Ram-raiders rob the shop and bag their loot in under 90 seconds.

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

We had a successful day of action, deliveringamajorblowagainstthegangbyputting 18peoplebehindbars.Thiswasaperfectexampleofhoweffectiveinternationalcooperation can be. E uropol, and its network of iaison officers, supports and builds trust l etweenEuropeanlawenforcementauthorities b

to uccessfullytacklecross-borderorganised s crimetogether. Aftertheevent,theelectricalretaileraffected bythesecrimesinformedusthat,sincethearrests,nofurtherram-raidshadbeencarriedout inEurope,soitwasanexcellentresultallround.

ANALYTICAL SUPPORT
100criminalanalysts,whoareamong thebesttrainedintheworldanduse state-of-the-art tools to uncover the activitiesofsomeofthemostdangerousorganisedcrimeandterrorist networks operating in Europe. The deAnalytical support can be provided remotelyfromEuropolpremises,or inthefield.AWFsofferavarietyof operational and strategic products whicharesharedamongparticipants. WithinanAWF,aspecifictargetgroup orJointInvestigationTeamcanbeset uptomeettheneedsofagroupof MemberStatesandtotackleacommoncriminalphenomenon. high-priorityseriouscrimeareasimpactingtheEuropeanUnion.

livery of this work takes place within the framework of an analysis work file(AWF).TheAWFisaninstrument uniquetoEuropol,inwhichanalysts worktogetherwithorganisedcrime Analysis is at the core of Europols activities. It employs more than and terrorism specialists to gather criminalintelligence.AWFscoverall

OPERATIONAL CENTRE 24/7


Themainaimistosupportlawenforcementagenciesintheirongoing internationalinvestigationsandtobe the single point of contact for receivingoperationalrequestsandinformation. This enables Europol analysts to run an overall search of all the E uropoldatasystems,tosearchfor anymissinglinksinongoinginvestigations.Europolsoperationalcoordination and support centre operates on a24/7basis.Europolsupportsmore Europolprovidesarapidandflexible response to ongoing international investigations. The Europol operational centreisacentralpointwherecriminal informationfrommultiplesourcesand multiplecountriesiscross-checked. than12000seriouscrimeandterrorismcasesperyear,withthisnumber increasing every year.

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

Rein Partel

SECURE INFORMATION EXCHANGE NETWORK APPLICATION (SIENA)


Europolliaisonofficers,analystsand experts use secure and innovative communicationmeansintheirwork. SIENAisthenewgenerationtoolthat meetsthe21stcenturycommunication needs of EU law enforcement. It is used to manage the exchange of o perational and strategic crime- r elatedinformationbetweenMember States,Europolandthirdpartieswith which Europol has cooperation agreements.SIENAoperatesinawaythat complies with all the legal requirementsofdataprotectionandconfidentiality.Itensuresthesecureexchange ofsensitiveinformation.

Member State liaison bureau

SIENA

Member State (Another competent authority)

Member State Europol National Unit

Third parties

Europol ensures a safe exchange of crime-related information via SIENA.

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EUROPOL INFORMATION SYSTEM


TheEuropolinformationsystemallows thestoring,searching,visualisingand tigations and facilitates the sharing of sensitiveinformationinasecureand reliableway.Theinformationsystem isavailableinallofficialEUlanguages. Futureversionsofthesystemwillprovidefunctionalitiestomatchbiometric datasuchasDNAprofiles,fingerprints and photographs.

Dreamstime

linkingofinformationrelatedtotransnationalcrimes.ItallowslawenforcementagenciesacrossEuropetocooperate on international investigations. Thesystemautomaticallydetectsany possiblehitsbetweendifferentinves-

EUROPOL LIAISON OFFICERS


officersaresecondedtoEuropolby allanalyticalprojects,facilitatingthe exchangeofstrategicandoperational information.Theyparticipateinoperational meetings and coordinate controlleddeliveriesandcross-bordersurveillanceina24/7callsystem.Theyhavealsoanadvisoryrole andliaisewiththeirnationalexperts tosupporttheestablishmentofJoint InvestigationTeams.

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EUandnon-EUlawenforcementauthorities. They guarantee fast and effectivecooperationbasedonpersonalcontactandmutualtrust.The networkofEuropolliaisonofficersis auniqueplatformtogroupofficers fromover30countriestogetherina secureoperationalenvironment.The liaisonofficersactivelyparticipatein

Some130liaisonofficersarebasedat Europolheadquarters.Theseli ison a

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

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MOBILE OFFICE ON-THE-SPOT SUPPORT


Reportscomeinoffourjewelleryshoprobberies inParis.Anotheronehasbeenbrokenintoon BoulevardBarcelinBrussels.Andsixjewellery shophavebeenrobbedinasimilarwayinAustria (ViennaandSalzburg),bysuspectsfromEstonia. Duringtheoperation,allthesuspectsarearrested and searches are carried out at their residences. Manymobilephones,SIMcards,notesandother recordsareseized.Europolanalysesthisdatato identify further international links. Physical evidencelinkingthesuspectstotherobberiesisfound. Europolreceivesdatawhichhavebeenanalysed throughouttheoperationfromthecountriesinvolved.SeveralreportsareissuedtotheMember Statesconcerned.Onthedayofaction,arrests andhousesearchesaresupportedbyaEuropol team:specialistsandanalystsarepresentatthe coordination centre set up in Tallinn and an on-thespotmobileofficeisusedtosupporttheoperation. Thisparticularoperationhasledtotheidentificationandarrestofeightsuspectedmembers ofEstonian-basedgangsinBelgium,Franceand
A typical jewellery shop targeted by the criminal gang.

andAustria.Ajointpoliceoperationissetupand carried out in Estonia.

Austria. Europolsupportsmorethan12000casesper year.ManyoftheminvolvetheEuropolmobile officeandon-the-spotEuropolofficers.

Toaidnationalinvestigators,Europolorganisesa preparatorymeetingwhichisattendedbyinvestigatorsfromBelgium,Germany,Estonia,France

MOBILE OFFICE
Themobileoffice,staffedbyEuropolexpertsandanalysts,canprovidesupportforawiderangeofactivities suchasongoinginvestigations,majorsportsevents, key international conferences and other occasions whereamobilisationofpolicecooperationisneededto provide security. The following services are provided: r eal-time,secureaccesstothedifferentEuropol computerisedanalysissystems;dataonpeopleand phonenumberscanbecheckedwhilethemobile officeisdeployed;theimmediateresultisinvaluable whenitcomestofast-movinginvestigations; t hepossibilitytodeliveron-the-spotanalyticalproductssuchasreports,chartsandotherdata; t hepossibilitytodeploymoremobileofficesforthe sameoperationinthecaseofsimultaneousarrests indifferentlocations; a satelliteconnectionthatincreasestheflexibility ofthesystem.

OPERATION MONET V
UndertheremitofOperationMonetV,liveanalytical supportwasprovidedviathemobileofficetoSpanishlawenforcementauthoritiesinGranCanaria.One Europolanalystwaspresentthroughouttheoperation, which targeted cash couriers within high-risk destinationenvironments.Asaresultoftheoperation,the GuardiaCivilseizedEUR402090,1.2kgofcocaine and other illicit products.

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T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

FORENSIC AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT


From an Italian investigator:
Itisfiveoclockinthemorningandmytaxiis waitingoutside.Atthistimeofthedayitisstill dark,eventhoughitisonlytheendofJuly.Theair in The Hague is crisp and carries the salty scent of thesea.Inafewminutes,IwillarriveatEuropol headquarters,asanationalexpertappointedbythe ItalianNationalPolicetocoordinateaninternational operation,code-namedCreieur. tions.Ofcoursetherearealsothesoldiers thoseinchargeofcollectingthecreditcards.All havemonthlytargets.Investigationsleadtothe firstidentificationsandthefirstarrests.When wehearsomeoneisarrivingatanairport,we identifythem.Ifweheartheyarerecovering skimmingdevices,wearrestthem.Eachtime weoperateusingadifferentfieldofficertoreduce the suspicion of a planned attack. We work to piece together the route to identifyingtheleaders.Investigationsgatherpace:ina periodofaroundtwoyears,some600000phone callshavebeenexaminedfrom450phonesand aclearpictureoftheRomaniancriminalorganisationcreated.Itisasuccessfulgang,whichis stealingmillionsofeuroseveryyear. WedeliverourfinalreporttotheItalianJudicial Authority:thereare36peopletoarrestinfive countries,andwedoitdiscretelysoasnotto LetmeturnbacktheclocktoexplainhowIhappentobeatEuropolthismorning.TheItalian cityofPescaraissufferinggreatlyfromcredit cardskimmingfraud.EvidencesuggeststheculpritsareaRomaniancriminalgroup. Investigationsareauthorisedbythe localprosecutor,andthepoliceare able to use the usual methods wiretaps,surveillance,translating andshadowing.Thisisabusygroup ofcriminalsandalleffortsaremade to ensure that they are unaware theyarebeingtapped.Thepolice teamisexperienced,talentedand motivated. Itappearsthecriminalsarewellorganised. They collect data and pass itbacktoRomania,wherethefake So,thatshowIcametobein TheHague.Next,anoperational centreisestablishedatEuropolheadquarters. Wiretapstellusthatthecriminalssuspectsomething,sotheprosecutorpreparesforarrests. Ientertheoperationalcentreandseeateamof Europolexpertspreparedandreadyforaction. AEuropolmobileofficeisready.Iamattheheart of policing at Europol and connected to police teamsspreadacrossthecontinent. credit cards are created and then sentbacktotheteamsontheground,across thecontinent.ThewholeEUisunderattack.Itis averysophisticatedoperation.Leadingoperators inRomaniamanagethestolendata;technicians createtheskimmingdevicesandrecoverthe datafromthem;andlogisticsspecialistsprovide accommodationforoperatorsontheground,as wellastransporttoandfromairportsandstaWemeet,introduceourselvesand speakaboutwhatwewanttodo, what we need and which countries are involved. We share evidence and fix the next meeting. Now otherpoliceofficersareparticipatingandjudicialauthoritiesfrom the countries involved are present. Wefinaliseoperationaldetailsand decide on the date of action. compromisetherestoftheoperation.Thegang is all over Europe. European arrest warrants are prepared but many cannot bedelivered.The prosecutorisdeterminedandmakesthemost ofhisexperiencehecontacts EuropolandEurojust.

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Alexandra Wegner

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

Criminal evidence seized during Operation Creieur.

Thedayofactionstartsat6a.m.andarrests take place all over Europe. The news starts to trickleinfromItaly,theNetherlandsandRo-

Europoldidntinterfere.Itsaid:The investigationisyours,notours.Itgaveusvaluablehelp, competentresourcesandapositiveattitude.We realisedthat,withoutassistancefromourpartnersacrossEurope,itwouldhavebeenimpossible to achieve such a spectacular result. There is one morepositiveoutcomeallCreieuroperational datawillbepooledinadedicatedEuropolanalysis workfile(AWF),whereitwillbeavailabletoassist all other ongoing and future investigations. Lookingback,itwasexcitingtoexperience such a well-coordinated law enforcement peration,especiallyforme,visitingthiscold o cityontheNorthSeacoastfrommysunny Italiantown.

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mania.Cooperationisexcellentandphonesare ringing.Wemanagetotrackdownsomecriminals who had disappeared. People who should havebeeninIrelandarenolongertherebut theycouldbeinBelgium.Inminutes,weare incontactwithaBelgianliaisonofficer.Hetells usthatthreepeoplearebeingheldandtwoare onthewantedlistsuccess!Morearearrested overthenexttwodays.Eventually,twothirdsof thewantedcriminalsareapprehended.Thisis internationalteamworkatitsbestwewould never have had this success without Europol and Eurojust.

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

FORENSIC AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT

Europol provides forensic and technical support in the following areas: paymentcardfraud euro counterfeiting and the production of counterfeit goods cybercrime dismantlingofillicitdrugproduction,storageanddumpsites.

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Europol supports an investigation of the largest illicit drug laboratory ever found in the Netherlands.

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

DISMANTLING OF DRUGS LABORATORIES

TheEuropeanUnionisasignificant region for the illicit production of syntheticdrugs,particularlyamphetamineandecstasy.Eachyeararound 60to90large-scaleproductionsites areidentified,seizedanddismantled. Storage sites for potentially dangerous precursorchemicalsusedinthedrug manufacturingprocessareoftendis-

photographicandtechnicalinformation onsyntheticdrugproduction,storage anddumpsites.Thisenablestheidentificationofmatchesbetweenseized equipment,materialsandchemicals. Inaddition,theEuropolSyntheticDrug System(ESDS)includesinformation on modus operandi and significant seiz res.Thisenablestheidentification u ofmatchesbetweenseizuresandhelps toprofileandtargetcriminalgroups. TheEuropolSpecificMeansofConcealment(ESMC)containsinformationon the concealment methods used to transport cocaine.

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coveredduringinvestigationsinMemberStates.Europolexpertshelptodismantleillicitproductionsitessecurely and collect evidence. They also carry outtechnicalinvestigationsoncustommadeandindustrialequipmentseized in production and storage units. TheEuropolIllicitLaboratoryComparisonSystem(EILCS)comprisesdetailed

Sample of photographic data stored in the Europol ESDS/ESMC: concealment of cocaine using animals.

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

THE CENTRAL OFFICE FOR COMBATING EURO COUNTERFEITING

EuropolhasbeendesignatedtheEuropeanUnionscentralofficeforcombatingeurocounterfeiting.Thislegalstatusqualifiesittoactasaworldwidecontactpointforcombatingcounterfeitingofthecurrency. Actinginthiscapacity,Europolprovides,amongotherthings,forensicsupporttodeterminetheoriginofmaterialsand devicesusedforthemanufacturingofcounterfeits.Additionally,Europolprovidestechnicalsupportandtrainingontactical andtechnicalissuestoprotecttheeurofromcounterfeiting.

TERRORIST FINANCING TRACKING PROGRAMME A NEW COUNTERTERRORISM SERVICE


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On1August2010,anagreemententeredintoforcebetweentheUnited StatesandtheEuropeanUniononthe processing and transfer of financial messaging datafrom theEUtothe USA to support the US Terrorist FinancingTrackingProgramme(TFTP). Europolhasbeenentrustedwiththe newresponsibilityofverifyingUSrequestsfordatatransfers.Itreviews suchrequests,ensuringthattheyare compliantwiththetermsofthisagreeInordertoaccommodatetheagreement,Europolhascreatedadedicated unitofexperiencedcounterterrorism TheagreementenablesEuropoltoreceiveintelligenceleadsfromtheUS analysisprogrammeandalsoallows Europol to generate European analyticalrequeststotheUSTFTP. ment,andtheUSAcannotreceiveany dataunlessanduntilthisisverified. financialspecialistsandanalysts,who willactivelyengagewithUSauthorities toprovideacomprehensive,robustresponsewhichwillfocusthecombined energiesoftheEUandUSauthorities incombatingthefinancingofterrorism.Counterterroristinvestigatorsin theEUMemberStatescanaccessthis significantUSprogramme,forexample tocheckthefinancialactivitiesofterroristsuspects,throughthededicated unit at Europol.

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T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

THE BENEFITS OF EMPLOYING A JOINT INVESTIGATION TEAM


ThebenefitsofaJointInvestgationTeam(JIT)can i berealisedbyeventhelargestandmostsophisticated of police organisations. One of the partners in OperationGolfLondonsMetropolitanPoliceService isveryexperiencedininternationalinvestigations. ThelargestpoliceforceintheUK,withahugeinternationalreputation,itregularlyinvestigatescrimes andoffencesontheinternationalstage,makingfull useofitsownanditspartnersresources.Buteven theMetropolitanPolicefoundthattheJITtheysigned withtheRomanianauthorities,todealwithaspecific humantraffickingcrimeissueonthe streetsofthecapital,broughtgreat benefitstotheirinvestigation. The support that Europol gave to TheJITprovidedforthesecondment oftwoRomanianpoliceofficersto London.Thisprovedinvaluablein enhancingtheMetropolitanPolices understandingofthecultural,legal and operational challenges they facedworkinghand-in-handwithaforeignadministration.Theabilitytoinitiateenquiriesknowingthat theycould,andwould,bepursuedwithinRomania ontheirbehalfwithoutthenecessityofformallettersofrequestwasagreatadministrativerelief.The availabilityofin-houseexpertise,whichextendedto the analytical work done on Operation Golf and operationally through theliaisonbureaux,alliedtothejudicialsupportaffordedbyEurojust, ensured that the full range of tools availableatEUlevelwasutilised. ThisisevenmorerelevantgiventhatOperation Golf,withallitssuccess,isnotaninvestigationled byanationalorspecialistunitbutwasinitiatedby acitycentredivision,todealwithaproblemwhich washavingamajorlocalimpactbutwasclearly organised at an international level. Thereisnodoubtthatthefinancialsupportofferedby theEuropeanCommissionhelpedtosustainthecommitmenttothisoperation.Thisfinancialsupportwas usedtofundoperationalmeetingsinEngland,Romania andSpain,andatEuropolandEurojustinTheHague. Suchmeetingsallowedinvestigatorstositdownalongsidejudicialauthorities,Europolandotherpartners,to plan and coordinate the operation as it developed. language,intelligence,localknowledge,information andnationalcontactsbackinBucharest,madethe wholeoperationrunmuchmoresmoothly.

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Fotolia

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

OPERATION GOLF

Operation Golf: A Romanian village where criminals source children for trafficking.

OperationGolfisaMetropolitanPoliceServicecriminalinvestigationinto Romanian-organisedRomacrimenetworks and targets one of the largest

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humantraffickingringsinEurope.The gangsspecificallyexploitchildrenwho areforcedtoroutinelybegandsteal acrosstheUKandtherestofEurope. This operation is in partnership with theCrownProsecutionService,theRomanianNationalPolice,theUKHuman TraffickingCentre,EuropolandEurojust.ThepartnershipisaformalJoint InvestigationTeam(JIT)underEUlaw andwasthefirstsuchJITaddressing thistypeofcrimeinEurope. OperationGolfachievedthefirstconvictionintheUKforboththetraffickingofachildforcriminalexploitation andinternaltraffickingwithintheUK. Fourmembersoftheorganisedcrime networkweresentencedtoatotalof24 yearsinprison.OperationGolfhasbeen DetectiveSuperintendentBernieGravett,theseniorinvestigatingofficerat theMetropolitanPolice,says:TheJIT legislationhassomanybenefitsforinsuccessful in receiving funding support fromtheEuropeanCommission,largely duetotheuniqueworkbeingcarried outbytheJointInvestigationTeam.
In contrast, the villa of one of the criminal traffickers.

ternationalinvestigations.Theabilityto deployRomanianofficersalongsidemy own during searches and arrests proved invaluable.Theyhaveconductedcriminalinterviewswithmyinvestigators, andinadditiontheyareabletoeasily recognisefalsedocumentsandgather intelligence that a UK police officer wouldhavemissed.Theformationof aJITisrecommendedforanycountry thatintendstomountaproactiveoperationtobringoffenderstojustice.

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

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Operation Golf identified 168 trafficked children.

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OPERATION GOLF STATISTICAL OVERVIEW


168 Number of trafficked children identified by Operation Golf GBP 20 000 Average price for a trafficked child in the UK EUR 160 000 Estimated annual illicit income for organised crime from a single trafficked child EUR 25 000 Value of the benefit fraud identified and stopped as a result of Operation Golf

ANNUAL STATISTICS ON TRAFFICKED CHILDREN


1.2 million Number of trafficked children worldwide (Source: Unicef) USD 12 billion Global value of human trafficking (Source: Unicef) 200 000 Number of trafficked individuals from eastern Europe (Source: OSCE) USD 2 50010 000 Price range of a child trafficked to Italy

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T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

Kristian Berlin

EuropeanPoliceOffice The European Investigator Targeting criminals across borders 201120pp.21x29.7cm.

T h e e u r o p e a n I n v e s T I g aT o r ta r g e t i n g c r i m i n a l s a c r o s s b o r d e r s

QL-30-09-276-EN-C

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