Crime News

Customs and other law enforcement authorities from 29 countries, coordinated by the Spanish Civil Guard (Guardia Civil) and supported by Europol, INTERPOL and the World Customs Organization (WCO), have joined forces against the trafficking of cultural goods. During operation Pandora III, law enforcement authorities assigned thousands of Police and Customs officers to focus on online market and key hot spots, with the aim of disrupting the activities of criminal groups involved in this form of trafficking. In total, 59 individuals were arrested and over 18 000 cultural goods seized, including archaeological items, furniture, coins, paintings, musical instruments and sculptures. During the checks, objects that may facilitate the trafficking of cultural goods, such as metal detectors were also seized. The majority of the objects seized during the operation were from European countries; however, more than 30 objects originated in countries outside Europe such as Colombia, Egypt, Iraq and Morocco. On-the-spot checks in 29 countries Fighting the illicit trafficking of cultural goods online is a key challenge. Criminal groups take advantage of digital platforms such as websites, social media and instant messaging apps to sell cultural artefacts of unlawful provenance. Within the framework of operation Pandora III, a cyber patrol week was organised by the Dutch Police (Politie) as part of a multi-disciplinary law enforcement initiative: 26 experts from 21 countries, Europol, INTERPOL and WCO mapped active targets and developed intelligence packages. In total, 169 suspicious websites were targeted, resulting in the seizure of 682 objects. Between 22 and 30 October 2018, the 29 participating countries carried out numerous checks: inspections in auction houses, art galleries, museums and private houses, resulting in 49 arrests and 67 administrative sanctions; controls at ports, airports and border crossing points, resulting in four arrests, three administrative sanctions and 201 cultural goods seized; inspections at hot spots (i.e. archaeological sites), leading to six arrests, 49 administrative sanctions and 909 cultural goods seized. Operation highlights Around 10 000 archaeological artefacts were seized as a result of a single successful investigation carried out by the Spanish Civil Guard; 91 ceramic objects and 109 ancient coins were seized by the Italian Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage (Carabinieri TPC) in private premises and mail centres; in a single investigation, 419 cultural objects were seized by Polish Police (Policja); Dutch Police spotted a 15th-century bible that had been stolen in Germany over 25 years ago. This rare edition was seized and returned to Germany; Romanian Police (Poliția Română) seized 128 pieces of ancient Roman military personal equipment, 134 pieces of antique ceramics and 189 coins (from the Hellenistic, Roman Republican and Roman Imperial periods) which had been stolen from archaeological sites; German Customs seized an ancient Mesopotamian crystal cylinder seal that had been shipped to Germany by post. The investigation is ongoing. International coordination Given the transnational dimension of this crime, Europol, INTERPOL and WCO established 24/7 operational coordination units to support information sharing as well as to disseminate alerts and warnings and perform cross-checks in different international and national databases. Europol (within the framework of EMPACT), played a key role in implementing the entire operation by facilitating information exchange and providing analytical and operational support (a mobile office was set up for the cyber-patrol activity). Officers made full use of INTERPOL’s Stolen Works of Art database with several hundred searches performed during the operation. Experts from Europol, INTERPOL and WCO were also deployed to provide analytical on-the-spot support over the course of the cyber patrol week.

Today marks the third anniversary of the No More Ransom, initiative that has helped more than 200 000 victims of ransomware recover their files free of charge since it was first launched in July 2016. With visitors from 188 countries, the project has become a one-stop shop for the victims of ransomware, registering already over 3 million individual visits in its short life span. Thanks to the cooperation between more than 150 partners(1), the criminal business model behind ransomware has been severely hit since the initiative was launched, resulting in some $108 million profit prevented from going to the wrong pockets. With 14 new tools added in 2019, the portal can now decrypt 109 different types of ransomware infections – a number that keeps growing on a monthly basis. The efforts against GandCrab – considered to be one of the most aggressive ransomware attacks last year, epitomizes such a success: Since the release of the first GandCrab tool in February 2018, nearly 40 000 people have successfully decrypted their files, saving roughly $50 million in ransom payments. The portal, initially released in English, is available in 35 other languages. English, Korean, Dutch, Russian and Portuguese feature as the top 5 languages, followed by French, Chinese, German, Spanish and Italian, which represents the global nature of the threat. Steven Wilson, Head of Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) said: “When we take a close look at ransomware, we see how easy a device can be infected in a matter of seconds. A wrong click and databases, pictures and a life of memories can disappear forever. No More Ransom brings hope to the victims, a real window of opportunity, but also delivers a clear message to the criminals: the international community stands together with a common goal, operational successes are and will continue to bring the offenders to justice.” No More Ransom is the first public-private partnership of its kind offering the victims of ransomware an alternative solution to losing their precious files or having to pay the demanded money to the criminals. 42 law enforcement agencies, 5 EU Agencies and 101 public and private entities have joined the concept since 2016. You can consult all the key figures in our dedicated infographic, and read a real behind-the-scene story of the initiative. Back-up your digital life Prevention remains as the most effective shield of protection. Citizens and business are remained to follow a number of simple steps to avoid ransomware from getting into their electronic devices in the first place: keep offline backups, ensure the software are up to date, use a robust antivirus and apply caution when clicking on attachments and visiting unknown websites.  Do you need help unlocking your digital life? Visit www.nomoreransom.org 1New partners added in July 2019: F-Secure, Mastercard, Get Safe Online, the European Banking Federation, the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland, the Spanish Banking Association, Intesa Sanpaolo, FraudSmart and EURONEXT.

Law enforcement agencies from across the globe teamed up against a Balkan organised criminal network suspected of large-scale cocaine trafficking from South America to Europe using private planes. The investigation was launched and led by the Croatian Police (Policijski nacionalni ured za suzbijanje korupcije i organiziranog kriminala) and the Croatian Special Prosecutors’ Office for Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime in early 2018. It also involved authorities from Czechia, Serbia and Slovenia. The operation was carried out simultaneously by agencies from three different continents – Asia, Europe and South America. Europe: the Croatian Police were joined by the National Drug Headquarters and Criminal Police and Investigation Service from Czechia (Policie České republiky), the Criminal Police from Serbia, Slovenian National Police (Policija), the French Gendarmerie (Gendarmerie Nationale) the Swiss Federal Police, Federal Police from Belgium (Federale Politie/Police Fédérale) and the Italian Finance Corps (Guardia di Finanza); Asia: customs authorities from Hong Kong, Judicial Police from Macao and the Malaysian Judicial Police; South America: the Department for the Suppression of Illegal Drugs  from Uruguay and the Paraguayan National Police, SIU and the National Anti-Drug Secretariat; US: US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) (country offices in Europe, Asia and South America); EU agencies: Europol and Frontex. How the operation needed global cooperation The investigation revealed that the Balkan traffickers were not only operating in Europe and South America, where they prepared several flights from one continent to another between 2018 and 2019 but also in Asia, where they facilitated and coordinated the maritime trafficking of multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine, mostly in Hong Kong and Macao. Law enforcement agencies implemented taskforces to identify and target suspects based in Europe, Asia and South America involved in cocaine trafficking. Parallel investigations carried out under the umbrella of operation Familia revealed that the organised criminal network had close ties to many criminal associates and contacts operating out of various EU and non-EU countries (primarily Australia, Belgium, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czechia, France, Hong Kong, Italy, Macao, Malaysia, Paraguay, Serbia, Slovenia and Uruguay). Real-time cooperation of the agencies mentioned led to identifying criminal activities in Europe, where the authorities from Croatia, Czechia and Serbia took the first steps to dismantle this network and the source in South America. The joint collaboration of all agencies resulted in seizing cocaine in May 2019 in Switzerland, after observation operations led by France. In parallel with the activities in Europe and South America and thanks to the investigation carried out by the Serbian authorities, another line of criminal activity of the targeted Balkan organised crime group was identified in Asia. The coordination of several US DEA country offices in Asia and Europe led the investigator to identify the Balkan criminal cell that operated out of Asia. The cell received cocaine shipments trafficked by sea. The investigation ultimately resulted in a multi-kilogram cocaine seizure carried out by Hong Kong Customs and Macanese Judicial Police. Final results: €2 million in cash and more than a tonne of cocaine seized Operation Familia resulted in the arrest of a total of 16 individuals, 11 in Europe (Croatia, Czechia, Serbia and Switzerland) and 5 in Hong Kong. One of the ringleaders, considered as a high-value target, was arrested in Switzerland, in close cooperation with France, while coordinating a 600 kg cocaine shipment importation using a private plane. The suspect has an international criminal background in Europe and beyond. Another high-value target was arrested in Croatia which was the final hit to the core of the targeted criminal group.   Officers seized more than one tonne of cocaine: 600 kg in Switzerland and 421 kg in Hong Kong. In Croatia, Czechia, Serbia, Slovenia and Switzerland, €2 million in cash was seized and more than €1 million in luxury goods, such as high-quality watches and vehicles were confiscated. Action coordinated by the Europol’s Drugs Unit Under the coordination and lead of Europol’s Drugs Unit, several other Europol teams were involved in providing the support of this international investigation. AP Sustrans (Europol’s analysis project involved in cases related to organised crime networks involved in money laundering) and Europol’s EU Internet Referral Unit (EU IRU) developed intelligence for the field investigative teams. Support was primarily given by setting-up several European and multi-continental coordination meetings, financial support of the deployment of three investigators during the action day in Switzerland and France, continuous analysis, cross-checks and other intelligence development provided in real-time. Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, provided technical and operational assistance.           This operation was a part of a broader European strategy against the Western Balkan organised crime network known as the Balkan Cartel and its top targets, which was coordinated by Croatia and supported by many EU and Western Balkan law enforcement authorities, the US DEA and Europol. Watch the video  

Europol is committed to tackling economic and financial crime. CEO fraud, also known as Business Compromise Fraud (BEC), appeared in Europe in 2012/2013 after carrousel fraudsters on carbon credits changed their fraudulent operations. CEO fraud in Europe was first detected in France, Belgium and Luxembourg. In the beginning, most cases of fraud were committed in French language and Organised Crime Groups (OCGs) were operating from outside the EU. In October 2015 Europol reacted by creating an Analytical Project dedicated to support EU Member States in their fight against this multi-million euros scam based on social engineering. The fraud is currently happening in nearly all languages and is a worldwide phenomenon. In a very recent article, FinCEN - the US Financial Intelligence Unit -  indicates that this scam amounts to more than $300 million a month in theft. Overall, in 2018, the FBI received more than 351,000 reported scams with losses exceeding $2.7 billion. Business email compromise scams are squeezing more money than ever out of victimized companies, with losses from the attacks almost doubling year-over-year and reaching in 2018 $1.2 billion.   Europol is an Observer in the Egmont Group, a worldwide network of 164 Financial Intelligence Units. The Egmont Group issued a public bulletin to alert competent authorities and reporting entities of key typologies and money laundering risks associated with BEC fraud schemes. A number of FIUs, including in particular FinCEN and FIU Luxembourg contributed in preparing this bulletin. Europol provided its input for the recent report of the Egmont Group.  

On 15 and 16 July 2019, the Hellenic Police, supported by Europol, dismantled an organised criminal group (OCG) smuggling migrants from Turkey to Greece and facilitating their secondary movements to other EU Member States. The network was using commercial flights in regional airports for the transportation of migrants from Greece to Western Europe. The network was providing the migrants with genuine documents which resembled the holder (look-alike method), and/or forged documents. The OCG was even using a specific hair salon in Athens to enhance the resemblance of the migrants to the legal owner of the travel documents. The criminals were earning €2000 per migrant for the smuggling from Turkey to Greece and from €4000 to €6000 per person to facilitate the secondary movement from Greece to other EU Member States. During the action days, the Greek authorities carried out nine searches and arrested eight people suspected of being members of the network, two of which have been identified as its leaders. The Hellenic Police arrested another suspect for migrant smuggling to Germany with a European arrest warrant. Among the seizures made are identities cards from various EU countries, equipment for document forgery, cash and various electronic devices. Experts from Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre (EMSC), deployed to Greece, supported this high priority case on the spot by providing expertise, continuous operational assistance, and tailored analytical support and cross-checking of operational information against Europol’s databases. The operation was carried out under the umbrella of the Greek National Operational Plan signed by Europol and the Hellenic Police in June 2016. The purpose of the plan is to disrupt organised criminal networks involved in migrant smuggling and to reinforce secondary security controls in migration hotspots.  

The advent of so-called disruptive technologies – those that fundamentally alter the way we live, work and relate to one another – provides criminals with new ways to pursue their illegal goals, but also equips law enforcement with powerful tools in the fight against crime. To remain relevant and effective, it is necessary for law enforcement authorities to invest in understanding and actively pursuing new, innovative solutions. Europol has published today a report, which will serve as a basis for future discussions between Europol, EU law enforcement and their stakeholders. Some of the emerging technologies include Artificial Intelligence (AI), quantum computing, 5G, alternative decentralised networks and cryptocurrencies, 3D printing and biotech. These are set to have a profound impact on the criminal landscape and the ability of law enforcement authorities to respond to emerging threats. The disruption comes from the convergence between these new technologies, the previously unseen use cases and applications, and the challenges posed by existing legal and regulatory frameworks. The report aims to identify the security threats associated with this and points to ways for law enforcement to use the opportunities brought by these technologies to combat crime and terrorism. It also highlights the pivotal role of the private sector and the importance of law enforcement to engage more with these actors. Furthermore, it is of paramount importance that the voice of law enforcement is heard when legislative and regulatory frameworks are being discussed and developed, in order to have an opportunity to address their concerns and needs, particularly with regard to the accessibility of date and lawful interception. Europol can deliver additional value in an age of rapid digital technological development by increasingly engaging in expertise coordination and collective resource management, which avoids unnecessary duplication of resources and expertise at national level. The Europol Strategy 2020+ set out for the organisation to support the Member States by becoming a central point for law enforcement innovation and research. Europol’s Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle, said: “Europol’s strategy sets out our ambition to firmly establish Europol as an innovator in law enforcement at the European level. It is no longer good enough to be reactive. Our ability to predict which emerging technologies criminals will turn to next is instrumental to our mission of keeping EU citizens safe. We hope to start a discussion with law enforcement in the Member States and other stakeholders.” Download the full report "Do criminals dream of electric sheep: how technology shapes the future of crime and law enforcement".

Some 300 pieces small arms, almost 1,500 pieces of light weapons, more than 140,000 pieces ammunition and over 200 kg explosives were seized by the Moldovan and Ukrainian law enforcement agencies during a Joint Operation (JO) codenamed “ORION”, coordinated by the European Union Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine (EUBAM) in cooperation with the European Law Enforcement Agency (Europol). Moreover, public awareness campaigns on voluntarily handing over the illegally possessed firearms, without facing any criminal liability, were organized during the JO “ORION” and proved to be also successful as 2,027 light weapons, 54 small arms and 2,025 ammunitions with different calibres, as well as 67 pneumatic and gas pistols were voluntary handed over by Moldovan and Ukrainian citizens. The JO “ORION” was carried in three operational phases, from September 2018 till January 2019 and covered the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. Aiming at supporting the Ukrainian and Moldovan law enforcement agencies in counteracting the illicit trafficking of small arms, light weapons, ammunition, explosives and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear materials, the Operation was supported also by the border agencies from Slovakia, Romania and Poland as well as by Frontex and SELEC. This Operation provided a great opportunity for information exchange on people, modi operandi and smuggling channels and it was part of EUBAM, EUROPOL, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Member States’ common efforts undertaken to tackle the threats related to cross-border crime in the region and it contributed to improving the situational picture in illegal weapons trafficking. The final results of Joint Operation “ORION” were shared during a debriefing meeting held in Odessa, Ukraine, on 17July 2019, offering the participants the opportunity to discuss in-depth the results of the Operation and coordinate their efforts in further counteracting illicit fire arms trafficking.  

Today took place the closing ceremony of the 5th edition of the Europol Training Course on Payment Card Fraud Forensics and Investigations, hosted by the Spanish National Police Academy in Avila, Spain. More than 250 international students have attended this Programme since its first edition in 2015. During the whole week, the training has gathered 53 investigator, forensics experts and accredited trainers from 25 EU Member States and third parties (Colombia, Moldova and United States) who attended sessions and workshops on a wide range of topics in the area of  payment fraud, such as online skimming, logical attacks on ATMs, card data analysis, cryptocurrencies, social engineering attacks or loyalty card fraud. Additionally, Europol staff presented an update on the different joints actions that regularly are conducted in coordination with the national authorities and the private sector, as well the services, products and solutions that Europol can provide to support national investigations.   Once more, the training was supported by the private industry with the participation of representatives of agencies and companies which play a key role in the fight against card payment fraud such as EAST, Diebold Nixdorf, VISA, American Express, Loyalty Fraud Prevention Association, Western Union, Uber and Santander Bank. This kind of events show how the close cooperation between public and private sector, the continuous training, the update on the investigative techniques and the improvement of  forensic capabilities, is the only possible way to succeed in the fight against cybercrime and especially to confront, in an effective manner, all the emerging threats in the field of payment card fraud.    

A joint operation between the Bulgarian National Police (Национална Полиция) and National Customs Agency (Агенция Митници), the Moldovan Police and the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, with Europol’s coordination, has seen the arrest of 12 individuals involved in the illicit trade of tobacco. Officers from the Bulgarian Combating Organized Crime General Directorate, State Agency National Security and Customs Agency with the direction of the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office took part in the investigation, in which the tobacco factory, where the criminals carried out their illegal activities, was dismantled. The action was conducted against two different facilities belonging to the same organised crime group: one site for pre-processing and cutting tobacco and another was a production site. The two processes were established in two different locations. The tobacco processed in the first site was used for the illegal manufacture of cigarettes in the second site. The illegal factory was able to produce 2 000 cigarettes a minute. The investigation revealed that in just one month criminals produced around 49.4 million cigarettes. The operation resulted in the seizure of 16 million cigarettes and in the arrest of 12 individuals (4 Bulgarian, 7 Ukrainian and 1 Moldovan nationals). Europol supported the investigation from the beginning by facilitating the exchange of key information between the involved countries, as well as by providing analytical support in identifying targets.

Operation Webmaster targeted a Finnish organised criminal group involved in human trafficking for sexual exploitation and money laundering. The joint operation led to six arrests, 16 website shutdowns and multiple seizures of cash and luxury goods. Following the action day on 26 March 2019, the suspects’ bank accounts in 12 different countries were frozen. With support from Europol and Eurojust, the Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) joined forces with national authorities from 14* other countries to bring down the trafficking ring. Sex trafficking websites for the Nordic market operated from Spain   Spanish authorities opened an investigation in 2016 targeting a Finnish national suspected of human trafficking for sexual exploitation and money laundering. The main suspect, based in Marbella, Spain, was allegedly managing websites advertising sexual services. The operation was triggered by an investigation into an organised crime group trafficking victims of predominantly Nigerian origin. The website was advertising services of victims from different countries based in Sweden and Finland. Other organised criminal groups involved in similar activities were also advertising the services of their victims on these websites.   The suspected leader of the criminal group was carried out criminal activities in at least 15 countries. He used intermediaries to channel criminal proceeds to international multi-currency bank accounts. In addition to using foreign companies and bank accounts, the money laundering scheme also included relatively small investments in cryptocurrencies. Nearly €3 million in seizures and frozen assets   A Joint Investigation Team was set up between Finland, Spain and Sweden to speed up the investigations. European investigation orders have been issued to Bulgaria, Estonia, Germany, Malta, Romania, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Issuing International Letter of Requests to China, Panama and Russia facilitated the financial investigation into the money laundering scheme. On the joint action day, law enforcement authorities in Finland, Hong Kong, Malta, Romania and Spain operated simultaneously. Seventeen house and bank searches were carried out and six suspects were arrested. The seizures included luxury cars, jewellery, approximately €30 000 in cash, digital evidence and documentation related to the money laundering investigation, and real estate in Finland. Company shares and bank accounts with €1.5 million were frozen. Europol has supported the joint investigation by organising coordination and operational meetings and providing analytical support since the establishment of the Joint Investigation Team in 2016.   Europol supported the action day by deploying experts in fighting human trafficking, cybercrime and asset recovery to three of the countries involved in the operational activities to cross-check operational information in real time against Europol’s databases. Europol activated the Virtual Command Post at the Coordination Centre set up at Eurojust to coordinate the action and supported the seizure of the online domains, collaborating with US hosting service providers. Europol also prepared the ‘splash’ page appearing on the website after the domain seizure. *The following countries were involved in the investigation: ten EU Member States (Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Malta, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom) and China, Colombia, Panama, Russia, the United States.

The informal meeting of the Council’s Standing Committee on Operational Cooperation on Internal Security (COSI) at Europol today marks the start of internal security-related activities of Finland’s Presidency of the Council of the EU. This is the first time an informal COSI meeting has been co-hosted by an EU agency, which also honours the 20th anniversary of Europol. The aim of the meeting is to prepare the discussions of EU Ministers of Interior at their informal meeting in Helsinki on 18 July 2019. Overall, 90 participants from all Member States, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, the European Commission, EEAS, EU CTC, Council Secretariat and EU agencies (Eurojust, CEPOL, EMCDDA, eu-LISA, Frontex) are in attendance. The delegations will discuss the following topics: the future direction of internal security in the EU; hybrid threats and internal security; 20 years of Europol – what is next? The chair of COSI, Ms Hannele Taavila, opened the meeting stating: “At the JHA Council in June Ministers had a first exchange of views on certain aspects with horizontal implications for orienting future developments in the area of internal security and EU law enforcement in particular. In the next six months the Finnish Presidency will take this debate further by focusing on various horizontal key themes. We need a comprehensive, whole-of-society and integrated approach to security to effectively counter any threats to our security. We also need common solutions to technological development, so that our authorities are better equipped to tackle the challenges and to seize the opportunities they offer. Our objective is by December to consolidate the views of the Council on the future direction of internal security on the basis of these discussions.” Europol’s Executive Director Catherine De Bolle used her welcome speech to refer to the threats posed by new technologies. She said: “Technological developments and the way they transform the criminal landscape present new and emerging challenges for law enforcement. This includes developments such as advancements in Artificial Intelligence, quantum computing, 5G as well as alternative decentralised networks and cryptocurrencies, 3D printing and biotech. It is clear that in an era of limited resources, cooperation, resource-sharing and maximising efficiencies are key. I am committed to further establish Europol’s role as a driver for innovation in law enforcement.”

Thirty-three countries*, INTERPOL, the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) joined forces in the Europol-coordinated operation Viribus for a massive crackdown on the trafficking of doping materials and counterfeit medicines. The operation, led by the Italian NAS Carabinieri and co-led by the Financial Unit of the Hellenic Police (Ελληνική Αστυνομία), is the largest action of this kind ever.Over the last 20 years, the worldwide trade in anabolic substances has increased significantly. The trade in doping substances is normally decentralised and highly flexible, open to anyone willing to order online or travel to producing countries and buy the substances in bulk from legitimate manufacturers. Mainly the final consumer, often gym fanatics and bodybuilders, determines the patterns of this trafficking. Athletes use anabolic-androgenic steroids and/or substances to improve endurance and performance, to reduce body fat and stimulate muscle growth. However, these substances can severely damage human health. They increase the risk of heart attacks and arteriosclerosis, damage the reproductive system, the liver and the kidneys and increase the risk of cancer.Animals are also not spared from this dangerous activity. Without much care for the wellbeing of their animals, owners use hormones to intensify breeding, to fatten up farm animals or to enhance performances in sport competitions, especially horse races.Tackle use and supply by detecting illegal labs and performing competition checksShutting down underground labs was one of the main objectives of the operation: nine were detected and closed in European countries and almost 24 tons of raw steroid powder were seized. But what is an underground lab? A clandestine lab for illegal drug production can be set up with relatively few resources or even in a garage. With some guidelines available on the internet, criminals do not need chemical skills to produce extremely toxic doping substances and counterfeit medicines. Usually, organised crime groups run these labs and sell the illegal material on the black market. Individuals can also run smaller labs. The produced doping substances are sold online or in local gyms, sports centres, illegal street shops and local markets.Operation Viribus also focused on doping checks during sports events, 1 357 checks (blood and urine tests) have been carried out in some of the participating countries.Doping checks are a routine procedure for any athlete taking part in competitions. The tests usually take place at the end of the competitions (in-competition checks) or during training or friendly games (out-of-competition checks).Overall results during the entire operation:3.8 million illicit doping substances and counterfeit medicines seized (seizures included doping substances, dietary supplements, medicines and sport and food supplements);17 organised groups dismantled;9 underground labs disrupted;234 suspects arrested;839 judicial cases opened;Almost 1 000 individuals reported for the production, commerce or use of doping substances. Latest trends detected during the operation: wholesalers are importing huge amounts of steroids to feed the illegal market;non-professional athletes, bikers and body-builders are buying small parcels of steroids, mainly from Asia or eastern Europe to traffic them to gyms-;increased use of social media for advertisement, promotion and sale of anabolic products;small organised crime groups are investing in illegal labs and selling the doping substances;continuous growth of unauthorised and unregulated online pharmacies, also on the dark-web;a larger use of rechargeable credit cards and cryptocurrencies to perform transactions.Europol deployed five experts and mobile offices to Hungary and Spain to crosscheck in real-time the data gathered during the course of the operation and provide forensic support. Experts from Europol’s Intellectual Property Crime Coordinated Coalition (IPC3), funded by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), also supported the activities through open source intelligence reports on websites and accounts trafficking doping materials. The pharmaceutical industry cooperated providing intelligence through the Pharmaceutical Security Institute (PSI). Europol supported the operational activities with several coordination, strategic and operational meetings. A Viribus workshop was held in Budapest, Hungary on 27-28 May to strengthen the joint response of law enforcement authorities, national anti-doping agencies, Eurojust, Europol and WADA to the trafficking in doping substances.*The following countries participated in Operation Viribus: 23 Member States (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Germany, Hungary, Ireland,  Latvia, Lithuania,  Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, the United Kingdom) and 10 third-party countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colombia, Iceland, North Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Switzerland, Ukraine and the USA) 

Over 100 representatives from 46 Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) visited Europol today on the margins of the Egmont Group Plenary meeting in The Hague. The financial crime experts were presented with some of the core activities of Europol. Essential in the fight against money laundering and terrorism FIUs play an essential role in the fight against money laundering and terrorism financing. Europol hosts the FIU.net, the European tool which enables all EU FIUs to exchange information among themselves and with Europol. The existing cooperation as well as the future creation of a European Financial and Economic Crime Centre at Europol will encourage building even stronger ties between Europol and FIUs with the aim of better supporting Member States and partner countries.

The level of digitalisation in our societies is increasing every day and so is cybercrime. This situation requires law enforcement and prosecution practitioners to constantly adapt their expertise, tools and practices to effectively and efficiently respond to this change. Today, Europol and Eurojust published the third joint report identifying and categorising the current developments and common challenges in combating cybercrime, which fall into five different areas. Loss of data: electronic data is the key to successful investigations in all the cybercrime areas, but the possibilities to obtain such data have been significantly limited. Loss of location: recent trends have led to a situation in which law enforcement may no longer establish the physical location of the perpetrator, the criminal infrastructure or electronic evidence. Challenges associated with national legal frameworks: the differences in domestic legal frameworks in EU Member States often prove to be serious impediments to international cybercrime investigations. Obstacles to international cooperation: in an international context, no common legal framework exists for the expedited sharing of evidence (as does exist for the preservation of evidence). There is also a clear need for a better mechanism for cross-border communication and the swift exchange of information. Challenges of public-private partnerships: cooperation with the private sector is vital for combating cybercrime, yet no standardised rules of engagement are in place, and investigations can thus be hampered.  Borderless crime calls for international measures All these challenges are of special relevance to combat cybercrime, but affect other crime areas as well. The very nature of cyberspace means that cybercrime is borderless. Consequently, international measures are required to address the current challenges. Significant progress has been made since the publication of the last report in 2017. Key components of this progress include enhanced cooperation between all parties involved and providing platforms and networks dedicated to sharing knowledge and best practice, such as the European Judicial Cybercrime Network (EJCN) and the Joint Cybercrime Action Taskforce (J-CAT).  

On 2 July, the Joint Liaison Task Force Migrant Smuggling and Trafficking in Human Beings (JLT-MS) was launched at Europol. This new operational platform will allow liaison officers from all EU Member States to step up the fight against constantly adapting criminal networks. An upgrade to tackle the most dangerous groups The new task force, coordinated by Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre (EMSC), will focus on intelligence-led coordinated action against criminal networks involved in migrant smuggling and trafficking of human beings. Liaison officers from all EU Member States and potentially operational cooperation partners will work even closer together to identify networks, prioritise, prepare and execute cross-border operations. The JLT-MS will increase the support mechanism already available in the EMSC, including analytical capabilities and tools, such as the Joint Operational Team (JOT) MARE and its Information Clearing House (ICH). The task force will provide a joint platform for direct contact and better coordination and cooperation between law enforcement authorities. Identify criminals and target the proceeds of crime The JLT-MS platform will also facilitate the joint development of stronger operational strategies which will help disrupt international criminal networks even more efficiently. The task force will enable the support and investigation of an increased number of high priority cases. JLT-MS operational joint activities will focus on the identification and further investigation of high value targets (HVTs). Additionally, the new operational platform offers an opportunity to target the proceeds of crime. In addition to the investigation of migrant smuggling and trafficking in human beings, this strengthened coordinated approach will enable considerably the increase and effectiveness of parallel financial investigations, in particular money laundering and asset recovery. Europol’s Deputy Executive Director Operations, Wil van Gemert said: Offering a ‘service’ in high demand, criminal networks of migrant smugglers are not shy about using violence and violating the basic human rights of their ‘clients’. Our experts helped Member States’ law enforcement agencies in tackling criminal networks during 39 Action Days on the ground, leading to more than 600 arrested suspects of migrant smuggling in 2018. The criminal networks are constantly reshaping their business models to avoid law enforcement radars. This is why through this new JLT-MS, EU Member States with the support of Europol will target even more effectively this major threat for human lives posed by criminal networks involved in migrant smuggling and trafficking of human beings.

In 2018, terrorism continued to represent a major security threat in EU Member States. Horrific attacks killed thirteen people and injured many more. A stark increase in the number of arrests linked to right-wing extremism, although still relatively low, indicates that extremists of diverging orientation increasingly consider violence as a justified means of confrontation. Compared to 2017, the number of attacks and victims in the EU dropped significantly. However, the number of disrupted jihadist terrorist plots increased substantially. The level of threat from terrorism has therefore not diminished; if anything it has become more complex. Europol’s 2019 EU Terrorism Situation and Trend Report (TE-SAT), a product requested by the European Parliament and published today, provides a concise overview of the nature of the terrorist threat the EU faced in 2018. “Terrorists not only aim to kill but also to divide our societies and spread hatred. That feeling of insecurity that terrorists try to create must be of the greatest concern to us. Increasing polarisation and the rise of extremist views is a concern for EU Member States and Europol”, said Catherine De Bolle, Europol’s Executive Director. “I am confident that the efforts of law enforcement, security services, public authorities, private companies and civil society have substantially contributed to the decrease in terrorist violence in the EU. Terrorism affects real people and that is why we will never stop our efforts to fight terrorism and to prevent victims.” Dimitris Avramopoulos, EU Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, added: “While Member States together with Europol have become increasingly effective in preventing terrorist attacks on European soil over the past years, the terrorist threat is still there. Today’s report shows that the threat of violent extremism, from whichever ideology, is heterogeneous and nimble, and continues to thrive off the internet. More than ever, the EU needs to continue its counter-terrorist measures, information sharing and law enforcement cooperation both on the ground and online, with the crucial support of Europol.” Julian King, EU Commissioner for the Security Union, concluded: “Europol’s report underlines that terrorism still poses a real and present danger to the EU. While our joint work to disrupt and prevent attacks seems to be having a positive effect, the enduring threat posed by Islamist groups like Da’esh, along with the rise of far right-wing extremist violence, clearly shows that there is still much to be done – notably in tackling the scourge of terrorist content online.” Main trends Thirteen people lost their lives as a result of terrorist attacks in the EU in 2018. All the attacks were jihadist in nature and committed by individuals acting alone, targeting civilians and symbols of authority. Often, the motivation of the perpetrator and the links to other radicalised individuals or terrorist groups remained unclear. Mental health issues contributed to the complexity of the phenomenon. Completed jihadist attacks were carried out using firearms and unsophisticated, readily available weapons (e.g.. knives). In addition to the completed attacks, EU Member States reported 16 foiled jihadist terrorist plots, illustrating the effectiveness of counter-terrorism efforts. The significant number of thwarted attacks and the so-called Islamic State’s continued intent to perpetrate attacks outside conflict zones indicate that the threat level across the EU remains high. Three disrupted terrorist plots in the EU in 2018 included the attempted production and use of explosives and chemical or biological materials. There was also an increase in the use of pyrotechnic mixtures to produce explosive devices in jihadist plots. A general increase of CBRN terrorist propaganda, tutorials and threats was observed and the barrier for gaining knowledge on the use of CBRN weapons has decreased. Closed forums proposed possible modi operandi, shared instructions to produce and disperse various agents and identify high-profile targets. In total, EU Member States reported 129 foiled, failed and completed terrorist attacks in 2018. The total number of attacks decreased after a sharp spike in 2017 (205), primarily because of the decrease in the reported ethno-nationalist and separatist-related incidents. Still, ethno-nationalist and separatist terrorist attacks continue to greatly outnumber other types of terrorist attacks (83 out of 129). In total 1 056 individuals were arrested in the EU in 2018 on suspicion of terrorism-related offences (2017: 1 219). One fifth of them were women. The number of arrests linked to right-wing terrorism remained relatively low (44 in 2018) and was limited to a small number of countries but increased for the third time in a row, effectively doubling for the second year in a row (2016: 12, 2017: 20). Right-wing extremists prey on fears of perceived attempts to Islamicise society and loss of national identity. The violent right-wing extremist scene is very heterogeneous across EU Member States. The number of European foreign terrorist fighters travelling, or attempting to travel to conflict zones was very low in 2018. The focus of jihadist networks has shifted towards carrying out activities inside the EU. The number of individuals returning to the EU also remained very low. Hundreds of European citizens – including women and minors, mainly of very young age- remain in detention in the Iraqi and Syrian conflict zone. All men and some women are believed to have received weapons training, with men also acquiring combat experience. While minors are essentially victims, there are concerns among EU Member States that they may have been exposed to indoctrination and training in former IS territories and may pose a potential future threat. There is continued concern that individuals with a criminal background, including those currently imprisoned, are vulnerable to indoctrination and might engage in terrorist activities. Despite the shrinking of its physical footprint, IS succeeded in maintaining an online presence largely thanks to unofficial supporter networks and pro-IS media outlets. Pro-IS and pro-al-Qaeda channels promoted the use of alternative platforms and open source technologies. While IS online propaganda remained technologically advanced, and hackers appeared to be knowledgeable in encrypted communication tools, the groups’ cyber-attack capabilities and techniques were rudimentary. In addition, no other terrorist group with a demonstrated capacity to carry out effective cyber-attacks emerged in 2018. EU Member States assess that the diminishing territorial control of IS is likely to be replaced by increased al-Qaeda efforts to reclaim power and influence in some areas. Al-Qaeda affiliates exploited political grievances on the local and international level, including in messages directed at European audiences. The report also provides an overview of the terrorist situation outside the EU, including in conflict zones like Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria but also the Americas, Australia, Russia and Central Asia, West Africa, South Asia etc.  More details and context can be found in the Europol’s 2019 EU Terrorism Situation and Trend Report (TE-SAT)

Today, the Copenhagen Special Investigation Unit of the Danish Police (Dansk Politi), arrested 31 individuals of a large, poly-criminal organisation, which smuggled, sold and distributed firearms and drugs throughout the EU. They are charged with the smuggling and distribution of 1.650 kg of cocaine. The Danish Police searched houses in 40 locations and huge amounts of narcotics, firearms and cash were found. The investigation was carried out in cooperation with law enforcement organisations from Germany, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Sweden as well as Albania. Europol's Analysis Project (AP) Copper, which supports the prevention and combating of crimes involving Albanian speaking organized criminal groups and associated organised crime groups, supported this priority case from the very beginning. AP Copper provided analytical support and organised three operational meetings with the involved partners at Europol's headquarters and in Denmark. On the action day, three Europol officers with mobile offices and data extraction tools were on the spot for supporting the international coordination and cross-checked collected information and data.

On 25 June, the Romanian National Police, British Metropolitan Police and Italian Carabinieri, with the support of Europol and Eurojust, disrupted a criminal organisation involved in organised thefts and trafficking in cultural goods. A Joint Investigation Team (JIT) was set up in 2017 between the cooperating countries with the assistance of Eurojust to coordinate the investigation into the theft of 260 priceless antique books from a warehouse in Feltham (UK). Owned by German and Italian nationals, the estimated value of these rare first editions dating back to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries tops €2 million. The suspects were already widely known by law enforcement around Europe. Operational Centre at Europol An Operational Centre was set up at Europol to coordinate the action day. National authorities conducted simultaneously 45 house searches (28 in Romania, 4 in Italy and 13 in the United Kingdom). As a result, 15 suspects were arrested in the United Kingdom and Romania. Law enforcement authorities also seized a handgun, substantial sums of money, electronics. Evidence gathered during the action day will now be analysed to identify potential links with 13 other ongoing investigations. Coordination and on-the-spot analytical support Europol supported the investigation by coordinating the information exchange, holding 4 operational meetings and providing on-the-spot analytical support and expertise. Europol deployed one analyst to the United Kingdom, and two analysts to Romania to provide support on-the-spot by cross-checking operational information against Europol’s databases. Eurojust supported the execution of several European Arrest Warrants and organised 3 coordination meetings. Combating property crime Europol Analysis Project (AP) FURTUM, is responsible for all areas of property crime such as major burglaries, armed robberies (banks, jewellery, money transporters and depots), motor vehicle crimes, cargo crime, metal theft, organised pickpocketing. In 2010 the European Union set up a four-year Policy Cycle to ensure greater continuity in the fight against serious international and organised crime. In March 2017 the Council of the EU decided to continue the EU Policy Cycle for organised and serious international crime for the 2018 - 2021 period. This multiannual Policy Cycle aims to tackle the most significant threats posed by organised and serious international crime to the EU in a coherent and methodological manner. This is achieved by improving and strengthening cooperation between the relevant services of EU Member States, institutions and agencies, as well as non-EU countries and organisations, including the private sector where relevant. Organised property crime is one of the priorities for the Policy Cycle.

On 18 June 2019, the French Judicial Police (Police Judiciaire), with the support of the Belgian Federal Judicial Police (Police Judiciaire Fédérale) and Europol, swooped on the members of a Russian-speaking organised crime group behind an illegal cigarette smuggling business. As a result of this action day, 15 individuals were arrested, including the ringleaders, and 2 million cigarettes were seized.   The stings follows a complex investigation looking into the activities of this criminal network, composed mainly of Armenian and Ukrainian nationals, which smuggled cigarettes and other prohibited goods from Belgian to the Paris region and Western France. This organised crime group is believed to have been very prolific: this network is responsible for 70 importations of smuggled cigarettes since October 2018, with a total resale value estimated at around €4 million.  On the action day, one of the Ukrainian ringleaders was arrested in France while driving a lorry loaded with 500 cartons of cigarettes of various brands, alongside € 10 000 in cash. Ten of his accomplices involved in various ways in this illegal traffic were arrested in the Ile-de-France region, and one in Nantes (France). In France, the searches led to the seizure of 3 386 cartons of cigarettes, and over €55 800 in cash. The other Ukrainian ringleader was arrested by the Belgian Federal Judicial Police of Liège, in execution of a European Arrest Warrant issued by the competent French prosecutor. During the searches, €90 000 in cash were seized at his house, alongside 117 sports bag filled with 6 000 cartons of cigarettes. In total, no less than €1.1 million have been seized as criminal assets. This investigation was coordinated in close cooperation with Europol, which allowed for the identification of the main organiser of the transport – and subsequently, the resale of large quantities of cigarettes within the Russian-speaking community in the Paris region.

On Tuesday 18 June, the Spanish National Police (Policia Nacional) disrupted a criminal organisation which was financing Al Qaeda terrorist militias. The complex operation was carried out in the Spanish cities of Madrid, Valencia and Toledo. Ten individuals were arrested,  and 14 house and premises searches were carried out, involving more than 350 police officers. Europol supported the Spanish authorities with three experts from the European Counter Terrorism Centre and two experts equipped with mobile offices and Universal Forensic Extraction Devices (UFED) to support the investigations on-the-spot. Information gathered during the operation was analysed and exchanged in real time and immediately cross-matched against Europol's databases. The leaders of the organisation form a family clan which committed tax fraud and money laundering crimes through the massive use of false invoices obtained by an illegal business they had been running for years. The proceeds of their illegal business was sent to Syria via the Hawala system, allowing the transfer of money without any physical transportation of cash, in order to support Al Qaeda terrorist militias in the Syrian region of Idlib. The organisation is part of a huge international clandestine structure, with the aim of attacking the Western economic system as a form of terrorism.

The Belgian judicial authorities, in effective cooperation with Eurojust and Europol, targeted a terrorist group involved in the recruitment and training of Kurdish terrorist fighters. Two suspects were apprehended by the Belgian authorities for hearings, following a number of houses searches, conducted simultaneously in 5 countries.  Eurojust, the EU’s Judicial Cooperation Unit, facilitated the issuance and transmission of several European Investigation Orders that were swiftly executed in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany and Switzerland. Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre set up a coordination centre on a joint action day to support the operations of the law enforcement authorities in all countries concerned. The Belgian Federal Prosecutor’s Office, in close collaboration with the investigative judge of Liège, specialised in terrorism matters, initiated a criminal investigation into the alleged terrorist organisation in 2017. Several operational meetings and one coordination meeting at Eurojust served as a platform to swiftly exchange case-related information and efficiently coordinate the next judicial and operational steps. The members of the terrorist organisation allegedly belong to some of the military wings, (including People’s Defence Forces (HPG)) of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). They are suspected of recruiting and training terrorist fighters, using training camps and sessions in various countries.

A new milestone for one of Europol’s annual operations, supported by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and involving nearly 30 countries. Operation Silver Axe began in 2012 to target the illegal trade of pesticides. Since its launch, 1222 tonnes of illegal and fake counterfeit products have been seized. In 2019, 550 tonnes of goods have been confiscated in Europe and three individuals arrested. Now in its fourth year, operation SILVER AXE IV saw law enforcement officers carry out checks at major seaports, airports and land borders. Production and repackaging facilities were also checked in the 29 participating countries: Austria; Belgium; Bulgaria; Croatia; Cyprus; Czechia; Denmark; Estonia; Finland; France; Germany; Greece; Hungary; Ireland; Italy; Latvia; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Malta; Netherlands; Poland; Portugal; Romania; Slovakia; Slovenia; Spain; Switzerland; Ukraine; United Kingdom. Environment and health at risk Pesticides must undergo rigorous testing before being put on the market. Illegal pesticides are not tested so pose a threat to the environment and the health and safety of users and consumers. Operation Silver Axe focuses on the sale and market availability of counterfeit pesticides, (including infringements of intellectual property rights like trademarks, patents and copyright) and targets the illegal trade of pesticides. During the action phase, Europol experts exchanged and analysed data received from the countries participating in the operation and liaised with stakeholders from 34 private companies involved in the production and commerce of pesticides. Alongside this analytical support, Europol deployed six experts on-the-spot to support actions in Member States.   OLAF provided Europol and the participating countries with information on 120 suspicious shipments of pesticides shipped into the European Union. Private-sector and public-sector cooperation Cooperation with private industries and other European and international bodies was crucial to the success of the operation. Private-sector partners CropLife International, the European Crop Protection Association (ECPA) and the European Crop Care Association (ECCA) represented the plant protection industry during the operation. The European Commission’s Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety DG SANTE, OLAF, INTERPOL and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) from the public sector also participated in the preparation phase and the operation. Catherine De Bolle, Europol’s Executive Director: "This is only the fourth time this operation has taken place and we have beaten previous records again. With operation Silver Axe, Europol underlines that the public’s health and safety comes first. It is of critical importance that we team up with our partners to tackle these types of crimes together head on and bring those who are responsible to justice." Hans Mattaar, Technical Director of ECCA: "Every new Silver Axe operation shows how improving cooperation between law enforcement agencies leads to more efficiency in the fight against illegal pesticides. ECCA is pleased to see the result of Silver Axe IV, but at the same time concerned about the ongoing illegal business. We look forward to continuing our contribution to Europol in broadening the scope of Silver Axe. To increasing the pressure is the only way to discourage to discourage the criminal organisations behind this illegal trade." Christian Archambeau, EUIPO executive director said: "Counterfeit pesticides can have serious damaging effects for the environment and for the health and safety of citizens and consumers. EUIPO is committed to continue developing research to substantiate the impact of IPR infringement, analysis of the trends of counterfeiting as well as support enforcers’ efforts in the fight against fakes”. EUIPO’s research shows an economic loss of EUR 1.3 billion in the EU every year, due to counterfeit pesticides."

Colombia and Europol co-led operation Tayrona, a transnational operation targeting the trafficking of cocaine and firearms between America and the EU. During the operation, law enforcement conducted over 75 investigations and seized 19 552 kgs of cocaine; arrested 583 people; checked 36 vessels; and seized 140 shipments of cocaine in cargo and parcels. Additionally, more than 3 000 firearms were traced, 133 firearms seized, over 14 600 cartridges of ammunition, parts and components of weapons, several rocket launchers and hand grenades were seized. The core action of operation Tayrona took place between 8 March and 16 June. The operation was supported by INTERPOL and Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

Under the supervision of the Bulgarian Supreme Prosecutor’s Office of Cassation, police officers from the Bulgarian Cybercrime Department from the General Directorate Combating Organized Crime of the Ministry of Interior carried out a joint action against five cable operators in Bulgaria (in the cities of Burgas, Kardzhali, Blagoevgrad, Dupnitsa, Kyustendil, Gotse Delchev, Sandanski and Petrich). The operation was supported by Europol’s Intellectual Property Crime Coordinated Coalition – IPC3 and the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA).   The five cable operators were illegally intercepting and distributing more than 60 premium TV channels (both foreign and Bulgarian), without the consent of the rights–holders. The financial damage is estimated to be more than 10 million Bulgarian leva (approximately €5 million). More than 700 000 subscribers received the illegal broadcasted signal from the criminal network. The entire illegal hardware infrastructure used for the criminal activity was seized during the house searches. The suspects had also been distributing TV channels worldwide through mobile applications whose servers were traced and seized. Europol’s IPC3 supported the investigation on the ground by deploying an analyst and a specialist to Bulgaria equipped with a mobile office. Europol’s officers carried out real-time information exchange and cross-checks of the data gathered during the course of the action against Europol’s databases. IPC3 is hosted at Europol and funded by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).

French and Romanian authorities arrested 11 members of an organised crime group (OCG) involved in the smuggling of 308 migrants to the UK in a joint action day. Eighteen house searches were carried out in Romania, where firearms and around €480 000 in cash were seized during the searches. The operation was supported by Europol and Eurojust. Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre (EMSC) supported this investigation by providing analysis of operational data and hosting an operational meeting prior to the arrest phase. Joint Operational Team (JOT) Dunqett, under the EU EMPACT priority on the facilitation of illegal immigration, allowed for eight French investigators to travel to Romania and exchange information directly between the two authorities. Organised crime group: The OCG was composed mainly of Romanian truck drivers, intermediaries and leaders. Targets: Smuggled migrants were mostly from Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Palestine*. Modus operandi:  The OCG used trucks that belonged to Romanian companies. The migrants were transferred to transit sites in northern France, Belgium and the Netherlands, hoping to reach the UK as their final destination. Fees for smuggling: The truck drivers promised ‘guaranteed transit’ to the migrants and charged them a fee between €11 000 and €14 500. The total illegal proceeds amounted to approximately €3.4 million. So far, 59 active OCG members have been identified. The criminals are suspected of illegal migrant smuggling, participating in a criminal organisation and money laundering. France took the lead in the investigation in August 2018, followed by the Romanian and UK authorities in March 2019 and the Dutch investigation in May 2019. In 2010 the EU set up a four-year Policy Cycle  to ensure greater continuity in the fight against serious international and organised crime. In March 2017 the Council of the EU decided to continue the EU Policy Cycle for organised and serious international crime for the 2018 - 2021 period. This multiannual Policy Cycle aims to tackle the most significant threats posed by organised and serious international crime to the EU in a coherent and methodological manner. This is achieved by improving and strengthening cooperation between the relevant services of EU Member States, institutions and agencies, as well as non-EU countries and organisations, including the private sector where relevant. Migrant smuggling  is one of the priorities for the Policy Cycle. * This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual positions of the Member States on this issue.

A large-scale joint investigation, led by the French Gendarmerie Nationale in cooperation with the Romanian DIICOT (Directorate for the Investigation of Organised Crime and Terrorism), and supported by Europol and Eurojust, has resulted in the dismantlement of an international organised crime group involved in trafficking young Romanian women to France for the purpose of sexual exploitation. As a result of this investigation, 13 individuals were arrested, including the suspected ring leader, and 13 victims of sexual exploitation safeguarded. In a coordinated law enforcement action, 150 French officers from the Gendarmerie Nationale in Rennes and 60 Romanian officers from the Craiova Brigade for Combating Organised Crime, as well as the Craiova Mobile Gendarmerie and Special Action Service, were deployed during the simultaneous operations. The criminal gang aimed at gaining total control over the prostitution industry in the regions of Nantes and Rennes in Western France. They recruited vulnerable women in Romania by luring them with the promise of a better life, either by abusing their precarious financial situation or by resorting to other known recruitment methods like the ‘lover boy’. The gang used violence and threats against the victims and their families as methods of coercion. The estimated total value of the criminal proceeds is €1.2 million for the period 2017-2019. Europol and Eurojust have provided support throughout the entire investigation. Europol facilitated information exchange, provided analytical support including financial intelligence analysis and organised operational meetings to plan and prepare the executive actions. On the action day, Europol provided on the spot support by deploying a human trafficking expert to France, equipped with a mobile office, while a money laundering expert was deployed to Romania. This allowed for real-time intelligence analysis and cross-checks against Europol’s databases. Eurojust facilitated the issuing of European Arrest Warrants by the French authorities, which were executed in Romania, Germany and Italy.

On 17 June, a new decryption tool for the latest version of the most prolific ransomware family GandCrab has been released free of charge on www.nomoreransom.org. This tool allows victims of ransomware to regain access to their information encrypted by hackers, without having to pay demanded ransoms. The tool is released in partnership with law enforcement agencies from Austria (Bundeskriminalambt – BMI), Belgium (Federal Computer Crime Unit), Bulgaria (General Directorate Combating Organized Crime - Cybercrime Department), France (Police Judiciaire de Paris – Befti), Germany (LKA Baden-Württemberg), the Netherlands (High Tech Crime Unit), Romania (DIICOT), the United Kingdom (NCA and Metropolitan Police), the United States (FBI) and Europol and its Joint Cybercrime Action Taskforce (J-CAT), together with the private partner Bitdefender. The decryption tool counters versions 1 and 4 and versions 5 to 5.2, which are the latest to be used by cybercriminals. Previous decryptors for the GandCrab ransomware have helped more than 30 000 victims recover their data and save roughly $50 million in unpaid ransoms. Most importantly, the joint efforts have weakened the operators’ position on the market and have led to the demise and shutdown of the operation by law enforcement. This shutdown was a global law enforcement effort supported by Bitdefender and McAfee.   Launched in January 2018, GandCrab quickly became the go-to tool for hackers for affiliate-based ransomware, holding 50% share of all the ransomware market by mid-2018. Set as a ransomware-as-a-service licensing model, distributors could buy the ransomware on dark web markets and spread it among their victims. In exchange, they would pay 40% of their profit to the GandCrab developers and keep 60% for themselves. The GandCrab operators recently claimed that they have extorted more than $2 billion from victims. It is likely that they subjected over 1.5 million victims all over the world to this ransomware. Better safe than sorry The best cure against ransomware remains diligent prevention. Users are strongly advised to: always keep a copy of their most important files somewhere else: in the cloud, on another drive, on a memory stick, or on another computer; use reliable and up-to-date anti-virus software; not download programs from suspicious sources; not open attachments in emails from unknown senders, even if they look important and credible; don’t pay the ransom if you are a ransomware victim!　 Find more information and prevention tips on www.nomoreransom.org  

Yesterday, Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NTT Security, one of the world's leading providers of IT security solutions. The MoU was signed by Kai Grunwitz, Senior Vice President EMEA & Global Business Development at NTT Security and the Head of EC3, Steven Wilson, at Europol’s headquarters in The Hague. With this agreement, the two organisations are combining their efforts to make cyberspace safer for individuals, businesses, and governments and prevent cybercrime. NTT Security is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with over 1.500 security experts and over 150 Mio. attacks defended annually. NTT Security is committed to sharing its threat intelligence data with industry partners and law enforcement agencies such as Europol in a secure and trusted way, as a means of better protecting global customers from the rapidly expanding cyber-crime industry. The Memorandum of Understanding defines a framework for NTT Security and Europol to exchange threat data as well as information relating to cyber security trends and industry best practice.   On the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, the Head of Europol's EC3, Steven Wilson, commented:"As criminals increasingly threaten citizens’ and businesses’ digital lives, it is vital for the law enforcement community to work closely with the global industry players to create a safe environment on the internet. We are honoured to collaborate with one of the top global telecommunication players to fight cybercrime. I am confident that the high-level of technical expertise that NTT Security will bring will result in a significant benefit to our work. Working co-operation of this type between Europol and industry is the most effective way in which we can hope to secure cyberspace for European citizens and businesses.’’ Kai Grunwitz, Senior Vice President EMEA & Global Business Development at NTT Security, said: ‘’The threat of cybercrime constantly takes on new global dimensions.  Combating evolving threats requires cooperation between our public and private sectors.  Law enforcement and private industry must work together to understand these threats and provide a collective approach to stemming the tide of cybercrime.  With the Memorandum of Understanding with EC3, NTT Security continues to take an active role in the global fight against cybercrime.’’  He also added: ‘’The relationships we build today will prove to be valuable in the fight against cybercrime tomorrow.’’ Background: NTT Security is the specialized security company and enables companies to deliver resilient business solutions for digital transformation needs. NTT Security has 10 SOCs, seven R&D centres, over 1,500 security experts and handles hundreds of thousands of security incidents annually across six continents. Europol is the European Union’s law enforcement agency. Headquartered in The Hague, the Netherlands, Europol supports the 28 EU Member States in their fight against terrorism, cybercrime and other serious and organised forms of crime. With over 1 200 staff members, Europol uses state-of-the art tools to support some 40 000 international investigations each year, serving as a centre for law enforcement cooperation, analytical expertise and criminal intelligence.

New research by Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre reveals the terrorist organisation’s efforts to attract women to their cause. Women became indispensable to the so-called Islamic State (IS), both in conflict areas and in the West. They played their role in the organisation’s state-building enterprise and were granted more proactive roles on the battlefields. This increase in the involvement of women could pave the way for potentially different roles of jihadi women in the future. Europol’s report, the first in a new series, Europol Specialist Reporting, aims to shed light on how IS – a group that supports a patriarchal authority – attempted to appeal to and recruit women. IS’s ambition of building a functional state required the active and voluntary participation of women. Women were granted roles as doctors, teachers, ‘moral policers’ and – more controversially – combatants. Nevertheless, IS stressed that their main role remained that of stay-at-home wives and mothers. Women also featured noticeably more in IS propaganda than in the material of earlier jihadi organisations. IS clearly recognised the importance of women and their role in producing and disseminating propaganda. Official propaganda was itself aimed at women as IS soon realised the necessity of investing resources into reaching out to its female constituents. Five key findings from Europol’s report The incentives put across by IS to recruit women are in many ways gender-neutral. Its propaganda focuses on ideas and concepts that speak to the emotions of both men and women in equal measure, namely the revival of the Islamic caliphate and the defence of the umma.1 IS propaganda presents female jihadis to be as ideologically motivated as their male counterparts. Women are portrayed as seeking martyrdom and divine compensation, with their sense of empowerment lying in contributing to the building of an Islamic state. To quote one IS female propagandist: ‘Let these crusaders take heed, for just as the [caliphate] is filled with men who love death more than the crusaders love life, likewise are the women of the Islamic State’. IS online content was forthright in stressing the hazards of life in the caliphate; however, IS portrayed the suffering and adversity as part of God’s plan and as a stepping-stone to paradise.　 IS states that offensive jihad is not obligatory for women, and that a woman’s honour lies in being a producer of jihadis, rather than a warrior herself; nevertheless, the organisation encouraged women to carry out attacks against the enemy. As of late 2017, IS explicitly called on women to become actively engaged in battles and legitimised combative jihad for women. Examples of women who either carried out terrorist attacks or were arrested preventively prove that women are willing to use violence if the ideology allows them to do so. For now, it is not yet their role, but this balance may easily shift depending on the organisation’s strategic needs and developments. The study looked exclusively at the incentives put across for this purpose within the organisation’s propaganda. It does not claim to analyse the manifold psychological and sociological factors that could motivate individual women to join IS or subscribe to its ideology. This report is the first in a new series, Europol Specialist Reporting – a collection of reports published by our in-house experts on priority crime areas. NB: The propaganda analysed covers the period from June 2014 to August 2018. Download the report> ----- 1 The umma is a concept that encompasses the Muslim community worldwide, eliminating cultural, ethnic or national identities and adopting instead an identity based exclusively on religion.

Over 300 cryptocurrency experts from both law enforcement and the private sector attended the sixth Cryptocurrency Conference hosted at Europol’s headquarters from 12 to 14 June 2019. The event, organised by Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3), is the largest law enforcement cryptocurrency event in Europe. The conference looked at opportunities for closer cooperation and new partnerships to prevent and detect cryptocurrency-facilitated crime and to assist asset recovery. Experts shared best practices and law enforcement techniques using examples such as investigations into phishing, thefts of funds and DDoS extortion. The conference also included lessons learned from some recent investigations like the takedown of Wall Street Market and Bestmixer. Private sector experts specialising in the lawful use of cryptocurrencies also actively participated in the event to further enhance cooperation with law enforcement. Cryptocurrency wallets, exchanges and payment processors, including Binance, BitBay, Bitcoin.de, Bitfinex, BitFlyer Europe, Bitnovo, Bitonic, Bitpanda, BitPay, Bitstamp, CEX, Coinbase, Coinfloor, Coinhouse, Coinpayments, CoinsPaid, Ledger, Litebit, LocalBitcoins, OKCoin, Shapeshift, SpectroCoin, Tether and Xapo demonstrated their best practices in implementing Know Your Customer (KYC) policies and mechanisms, and risk-based approaches to suspicious transactions. Participants reflected on the legitimate use of blockchain technologies, including the use of cryptocurrencies for trading and investment activities, payment method and as a store of value. Like last year, Europol issued all speakers with traceable certificates permanently stored in the Bitcoin Blockchain, practically demonstrating the benefits of the tamper-proof, decentralised ledger technology. The transaction referring to the index that contains hashes of all certificates awarded to speakers is publicly available. New computer training game for investigators At the conference, Europol also announced the ongoing development of a cryptocurrency-tracing serious game, developed and co-created in close cooperation with CENTRIC (Centre of Excellence in Terrorism, Resilience, Intelligence and Organised Crime Research). The game, planned to be launched in October at the seventh Europol-INTERPOL Cybercrime Conference, will be the first law enforcement training opportunity on cryptocurrency and investigation using gamification. It will allow law enforcement officers to get hands-on training and advice on tracing cryptocurrencies in criminal investigations.

More than 4.7 million counterfeit products seized, over 16 400 social media accounts suspended and 3 300 websites closed in the EU-wide operation Aphrodite II against trafficking of counterfeit goods. A joint investigation carried out by law enforcement authorities from 18 countries and supported by Europol, resulted in the seizure of 4.7 million counterfeit products. During the operation, 16 470 social media accounts and 3 400 websites selling counterfeit products were closed. The online fake goods marketers were selling a large variety of counterfeit items including clothes and accessories, sports equipment, illegal IPTV set-top boxes, medicines, spare car parts, mobile phones, miscellaneous electronic devices and components, perfumes and cosmetics. The operation led to the arrest of more than 30 suspects and reported 110 others to respective judicial authorities. A select number of suspects are part of two distinct criminal networks responsible for producing and trafficking counterfeit products online. Several investigations are still ongoing. Europol’s Intellectual Property Crime Coordinated Coalition (IPC3) and the Italian Finance Corps (Guardia di Finanza) coordinated the joint investigation, with cooperation from the private sector. The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) supported the activities of IPC3 with a grant. Law enforcement agencies from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Ukraine and the United Kingdom are all involved in the operation. Digital platforms – no safe haven for counterfeits Criminal groups continuously abuse the communication opportunities of digital platforms such as websites, social media and instant messaging to traffic and sell counterfeit products. The exponential growth of internet platforms has also affected the development of online marketplaces (known as e-stores) that are considered as alternative retail channels. These new markets also take advantage of social channels to perpetrate illicit activities. Law enforcement, supported by the private sector, is therefore extending its response to online trafficking of counterfeit products. To counter the threat, Europol is examining the scale of the problem, gathering evidence and monitoring social media and sales platforms. Selling fakes on social media Sellers can advertise counterfeit goods through overt social media posts – with photos of the product and price – or through hidden links to other marketplaces located outside the EU. In the latter case, details of the transaction are arranged through other communication channels such as instant messaging applications or even by telephone under different names. Couriers deliver the packages while the payment is made with prepaid cards, money transfer companies or other forms of electronic payment and web-based services. Fake products sold on social media can be extremely dangerous. Lacking any quality control and not complying legal norms, fake toys, medicines, body care products, fake spare car parts, inks and material used to produce imitation luxury products and clothes can be harmful to consumer health. IPC3 intends to promote their recurrent operation, operation Aphrodite, to encourage more countries and private countries to get on board and contribute their expertise and explore new operational methodologies.

Most criminal activity involving counterfeiting is carried out by increasingly professionalised organised crime networks, which can reap large profits while running relatively few risks. That is according to the first EU-wide intellectual property crime threat assessment from Europol and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). The report also underlines that, although the majority of counterfeits in the EU market are produced outside Europe, in particular in parts of Asia, domestic manufacturing within Europe is an increasing trend. The threat assessment, carried out using EU-wide data and strategic intelligence analysis, also stresses that, as well as the traditional categories of counterfeited clothes, footwear and luxury products, there is a growing trade in fake products which have the potential to damage human health. An example of this would be the trade in counterfeit medicines for the treatment of serious illnesses, which appears to be increasing. In addition, fake goods are increasingly shipped via small parcels and express couriers, which are more difficult for enforcement authorities to detect. Online, illegal digital content continues to be distributed through BitTorrent portals and peer-to-peer networks, but also, increasingly, via cyberlockers, the threat assessment finds. The owners of these platforms generate profit through digital advertisements, which often include mainstream adverts from major brands. In many cases, these websites are also used to target consumers using phishing techniques or the dissemination of malware. The Executive Director of the EUIPO, Christian Archambeau, said: This threat assessment paints a stark picture of the scope and range of counterfeiting and piracy in the EU, and the damage it can cause to legitimate business and to consumers. Through our collaboration with Europol, we aim to support the efforts of law enforcement authorities in their fight against IP Crime, particularly in the online environment. Europol’s Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle, said: This report clearly shows that counterfeiting and piracy are not victimless crimes. Organised crime groups who produce and sell these goods have no respect for the quality of products which very often pose health and safety risks. Europol is dedicated to continuing its efforts, together with EU Member States and partners, to stop the criminal networks behind this dangerous and illegal trade. The health and safety of European consumers is of the utmost importance to us! The threat assessment will be released at the IP Enforcement Forum (co-organised by the OECD, the European Commission and the EUIPO) which aims to facilitate a coherent strategy to support effective IPR enforcement at EU and international level. This high-level forum will also study ways to reinforce cooperation in the fight against counterfeiting and piracy at all levels, including bridging governance gaps. The EUIPO will also release the new IP Enforcement Portal (a single EU platform for the enforcement of intellectual property rights) at the event, to support the IP enforcement community. This new powerful tool aims to facilitate the communication between rights holders and enforcement authorities, providing a central access point for most of the searchable databases for IP-related material, including TMview and DesignView. The portal combines the Enforcement Database (EDB), the Anti-Counterfeiting Intelligence Support Tool (ACIST) and the Anti-Counterfeiting Rapid Intelligence System (ACRIS) in a single platform.

The Commissioner of the New Zealand Police,  Mike Bush and Europol’s Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle, have signed a Working Arrangement and Memorandum of Understanding. The Memorandum of Understanding signed yesterday in The Hague will allow the New Zealand Police to  deploy a permanent liaison officer to Europol’s headquarters in The Hague, the Netherlands. The system of liaison officers at Europol ensures that the interests of law enforcement agencies in the EU Member States and non-EU partners, such as New Zealand, are represented at Europol. The Memorandum of Understanding will also  enable New Zealand Police to use SIENA - the Secure Information Exchange Network Application, managed by Europol. SIENA enables a swift and secure communication and exchange of operational and strategic crime-related information and intelligence. SIENA, as an operative instrument allows law enforcement authorities to collaborate effectively on a daily basis. Over the course of 2017, more than one million SIENA messages were exchanged among Europol, EU Member States and third parties. The possibility to share safely information among close to 1,200 competent national authorities from almost 50 countries and many international partners such as INTERPOL has shown its importance in fighting serious and organised international crime. In April 2019, Europol and the New Zealand Police already signed a working arrangement, which established a framework for cooperation and allowed to enhance strategic cooperation. Europol sees strong potential for the cooperation with New Zealand in many areas, including on online child sexual exploitation, Organised Motorcycle Gangs and drug trafficking. Furthermore, the  heinous attacks in Christchurch have shown the importance of increasing international cooperation also in the area of counter terrorism.

Less profit? Less crime! Organised crime is profit-driven. Depriving criminals of their profit is one of the most effective deterrents. Reinforcing cooperation between anti-money laundering experts worldwide is key to combating many crime areas. The concept of ‘no gain, no crime’ formed the basis of the Anti-Money Laundering Operational Network (AMON) meeting in Sofia, which was attended by experts from 37 countries. Participants were from EU Member States, Albania, Australia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colombia, Georgia, Israel, North Macedonia, Serbia, Switzerland, Ukraine, the USA. Prevention and disruption before prosecution  Experts discussed how law enforcement authorities ought to be ready to explore all possible avenues to fight money laundering, by being proactive and identifying the weaknesses and deficiencies, which allow the misuse of the financial systems. Law enforcement should endeavour to find all available opportunities and instruments to disrupt money laundering, including strong cooperation with the financial sector. Three dedicated workshops provided the opportunity to go deeper into the core topics in money laundering – underground banking and trade-based money laundering, the misuse of new payments methods to launder proceeds and complex financial crimes. The event was organised under the Bulgarian Presidency of AMON and was supported by AMON’s steering group (Belgium, France, Netherlands, Spain, and the UK). DG HOME, the Directorate-General of the European Commission responsible for migration and home affairs, endorses the effort to build and maintain a network of anti-money laundering practitioners. The initiative is funded by a grant from ISF Police (Internal Security Fund - Police).  The Financial Intelligence Unit at Europol hosts the permanent secretariat of AMON as part of Europol’s efforts to enhances the effectiveness of cross-border investigations into money laundering by providing fast responses and pooled expertise.

Today, the Executive Directors of Europol and Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, have signed a new joint Action Plan that will guide their cooperation in the coming years to strengthen their common efforts in enhancing the security of EU citizens. The action plan was signed by Europol Executive Director, Catherine de Bolle, and Frontex Executive Director, Fabrice Leggeri, at the margins of the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Luxembourg. The ceremony took place in the presence of the Romanian Minister of Interior Affairs and Chair of the JHA Council, Carmen Daniela Dan, and the Director-General of the Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission, Paraskevi Michou. Europol’s databases and criminal investigations will be strengthened by information gathered by Frontex during operational activities at the external borders. Information from Europol will facilitate more efficient management of the EU’s external borders and intelligence-based, targeted action against criminal groups and terrorists. This structural exchange of information between the two agencies will improve the work of border guards and support investigations. Efforts of both agencies in the fields of research and development of new technologies will also be closely coordinated, for instance for the introduction of the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS). Frontex will set up and manage the ETIAS Central Unit, which will provide operational support, as well as reinforcing and coordinating border control activities in Member States. Europol and Frontex also plan to hold annual meetings of executive management and exchange liaison officers.　

On 4 June, the Portuguese Immigration and Borders Service (Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras), supported by Europol, arrested eight suspected members of an international organised criminal group trafficking human beings for sexual exploitation. The Portuguese authorities arrested eight suspects in the Aveiro area, Albergaria-a-Velha, Ílhavo and Gafanha da Nazaré. During the operation, 20 women were identified as victims of sexual exploitation. During the operation, the Portuguese authorities searched twelve houses, twelve vehicles, two money transfer agencies and a travel agency. Six vehicles, gold, jewellery, money and false documents were seized. The criminal group operated in Portugal and other EU Member States. The group exploited victims from unstable social and economic backgrounds, such as those with a fragile home life or suffering from alcohol, drug or domestic abuse. The women, considered as objects, were threatened and forced into prostitution to pay for the debts and commissions imposed on them by the leader of the organised criminal group. Europol supported the investigation by coordinating the information exchange, holding operational meetings and providing on-the-spot expertise. Europol’s in-house experts also cross-checked operational information and produced an analytical report, which showed the criminal network’s geographical reach and exploited victims.

On 4 June, the Belgian Customs and Excise Administration (Administration générale des Douanes et Accises) dismantled a large criminal network in an operation supported by the Belgium Federal Police (Police Fédérale belge) and Europol. The criminals illegally produced cigarettes in the surroundings of the Belgian cities of Namur and Charleroi.  The Customs and Excise Investigation Team of Charleroi discovered professional cigarette manufacturing machines during a raid on a warehouse. The facility was also fully furnished with beds, a kitchen and even a gym. The Belgian authorities searched six other warehouses and one private property. A printing set-up was seized from one of the warehouses.  During the operation, the Belgian authorities seized 10 tonnes of tobacco and 25 million cigarettes, ready to sell. Other seizures of cigarette components such as filters, glue, paper, aluminium foil and packaging were also made. Europol supported the Belgian customs authorities by providing expertise and deploying a mobile office for crosschecks against Europol’s databases.   

Europol supported police officers in south-east England during the Hells Angels Euro Run 2019, which was held at a private venue on the border of East Surrey and West Sussex to mark 50 years of the Hells Angels in the UK. The event attracted around 3 000 Hells Angels members from all over the world.Police in Surrey and Sussex once again made public safety their main priority and subsequently introduced powers under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act to stop and search individuals within a designated area of Surrey and Sussex during the event. The special order was granted as police received information that some attendees were likely to be carrying offensive weapons. In total, 49 people were arrested in connection with the event for possession of offensive weapons and drug offences; a number of them have already been sentenced in court.An event of this scale and nature had never been held in the UK before and required careful planning to ensure public safety. The policing operation involved law enforcement agencies in the UK, the EU and beyond. Police in Surrey and Sussex benefited from information shared by international colleagues about some of the attendees and the risks they posed. Twenty-seven people were refused entry to the UK, all of whom were international members of Hells Angels and deemed to pose a risk to the wider public with previous convictions for serious crimes including murder, kidnapping, torture, drug dealing, violent assaults and firearms offences. Events like the Hells Angels Euro Run do not usually occur without serious incident when they have taken place in other countries.Europol plays a key role in combatting the criminal activities of outlaw motorcycle gangs (OMCGs). Europol’s Analysis Project (AP) Monitor and its project partners support EU Member States with expertise, knowledge and on-the-spot support with mobile offices in policing major biker events to ensure public order and protection.For this year’s Hells Angels Euro Run, Europol deployed officers with mobile offices and created a team of international observers from eight European countries, Canada and the USA to support on the spot and in the command centre. Europol would like to highlight the excellent professional cooperation with the British authorities involved and colleagues from other Member States, who supported the operation in the UK. Europol will continuously monitor OMCGs in criminal investigations and support EU Member States during major outlaw biker events.

An international operation against the illegal trade in reptiles has seen hundreds of seizures and 12 arrests in the EU. Europol coordinated information sharing between EU members States which led to the identification of almost 200 suspects worldwide. Operation Blizzard, carried out between 12 April and 22 May 2019, targeted the criminal networks behind the illegal global trade of reptiles. The operation, coordinated by Europol and INTERPOL, involved agencies from 22 countries and led to seizures ranging from live animals to high-end fashion products. The operational activities targeted aircraft passengers, commercial cargo, pet shops and those legally allowed to keep reptile. Europol supported the operation and provided technical support, coordinated information exchange, seizures and inspections in the EU. Thousands of animals saved from becoming wallets Almost 1 500 live snakes, lizards and geckos were seized from right across Europe. The inspections lead also to 12 arrests, six in Italy and six in Spain. Globally, operation Blizzard resulted in the seizure of 4 419 live animals including 2 703 turtles and tortoises, 1 059 snakes, 512 lizards and geckos and 20 crocodiles and alligators. Competent authorities seized 152 handbags, wallets, watchstraps, medicines and taxidermies derived from reptiles. Gathering intelligence to catch the criminals Europol supported participating countries to exchange information and intelligence ahead of the operation. This information was used to build the profiles of offenders and their associates and track their activity.   Europol and INTERPOL worked together to enhance international efforts in tackling the illegal trade of reptiles. Partners of Europol’s project Naultinus and member countries of the INTERPOL Wildlife Crime Working Group developed the operation based on the growing need to share and collaborate on organised crime groups trading in live reptiles and reptile products. Countries which took part in operation Blizzard include Australia, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, and the USA. Pedro Felício, head of Europol’s Economic and Property Crime Unit, said “Wildlife trafficking has increased significantly in recent years to the point where we have now thousands of reptiles, worth millions of euros, being seized every year by EU law enforcement agencies with the support of Europol. Globally coordinated police operations like operation Blizzard are now at the forefront of environmental preservation. Nevertheless, despite the various efforts made, the threat of environmental crime remains high.” Environmental crime: an EU priority In 2017, Europol opened Analysis Project (AP) EnviCrime following with the discussions of the new EMPACT priority on environmental crime. This dedicated team has been working to fight wildlife and waste crimes. Operation Lake is just one example of a recent successful operation.   In March 2018, AP EnviCrime launched project Naultinus, as a direct outcome of operation Jungla V2, which focused on wildlife trafficking in the EU and, more specifically, the illegal trade of reptiles and birds in the EU. In 2010 the European Union set up a four-year Policy Cycle to ensure greater continuity in the fight against serious international and organised crime. In March 2017 the Council of the EU decided to continue the EU Policy Cycle for organised and serious international crime for the 2018 - 2021 period. This multiannual Policy Cycle aims to tackle the most significant threats posed by organised and serious international crime to the EU in a coherent and methodological manner. This is achieved by improving and strengthening cooperation between the relevant services of EU Member States, institutions and agencies, as well as non-EU countries and organisations, including the private sector where relevant. Environmental crime is one of the priorities for the Policy Cycle. 

With the support of Europol, the French National Police (OCBC - National Unit in charge of Cultural goods trafficking) and the Spanish Guardia Civil (UCO) have dismantled an organised crime group suspected of stealing maps in the archival collections of libraries throughout Europe. On 20 May, 6 properties were searched simultaneously in France and Spain and 3 suspects arrested. 3 vehicles and €6 000 in cash have also been seized. The modus operandi was well defined: one of the member of the organised crime group would enter a library pretending to be a researcher interested in consulting the archives. The individual would then distract the attention of the librarian, making the most of this opportunity to cut sheet out of XVIth century books, mainly old maps. These maps were then sold for several tens of thousands of euros on the criminal market for cultural goods. Europol provided analytical support to prepare for the action, and deployed a mobile office on-the-spot in Montpellier (France) to extract and analyse mobile phone data on the action day itself.

Law enforcement and judicial authorities from France, Poland and Ukraine, working together in a joint investigation team (JIT), took action last week against an organised crime group involved in international trafficking of a heroin substitute. Eurojust and Europol actively supported the operation that led to 9 arrests and 20 house and car searches. More than 7 200 pills of a total value of $100 000 on the Ukrainian illegal market were seized, along with cars, cash, equipment, and other valuable evidence of the criminal activities. Europol actively supported the action day by deploying a mobile office to Marseille (France), allowing for the real-time of information against the Agency’s databases. Eurojust, the EU’s Judicial Cooperation Unit, facilitated the operation in real time by coordinating the exchange of information and helping solve judicial issues. The criminal proceedings against members of the OCG, involved in international trafficking of a heroin substitute, were initiated by an investigative judge of the Specialised Section for Public Health of the Court of Paris. Some members of the OCG were targeted by parallel investigations that were carried out by the Ukrainian Prosecutor’s Office of the Ivano-Frankivsk Region, with the assistance of the Security Service of Ukraine, as well as by the Silesian Division of the National Public Prosecutor’s Office of Poland. More than 150 magistrates and law enforcement officers were deployed during the joint operation, including the French Gendarmerie Nationale, the Central Bureau of Investigation of Katowice Police Department and Special Surveillance Team in Poland, as well as the National Police, State Fiscal Service and State Border Guard Service of Ukraine.

How can we better counter the illegal trade of dangerous doping substances? Anti-doping agencies and law enforcement authorities met today in Budapest to reinforce their joint response. Europol today shared best practices with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), Eurojust, national anti-doping agencies and law enforcement authorities at a workshop organised by the Hungarian National Anti-Doping Organization (HUNADO) in Budapest, the European Capital of Sport 2019.     Fair sport means fair play Regulators need to examine athletes and stop the supply of doping substances to keep sport fair. To defend the rights of clean athletes, WADA has created standardised doping control procedures for every national anti-doping organisation to implement. Checks are, however, not the only measure to be taken. It is also crucial to combat trafficking these dangerous substances and to eliminate their supply.  Several European countries implemented a separate criminal offence for trafficking of doping substances due to its severe health hazards. The use of such substances is punishable in several countries, both inside and outside the EU.  Enhancing the international response to doping  The cooperation between anti-doping organisations and law enforcement authorities was enhanced in 2015 by adopting the UNESCO international convention against doping in sport. This Convention, along with the World Anti-Doping Code, obliges anti-doping organisations and law enforcement authorities to cooperate.  Moreover, the Europol-coordinated project Viribus was launched in 2018 to fight the traffic of doping substances across the EU. Information sharing and close cooperation between law enforcement and anti-doping agencies have already resulted in a more coordinated international response to the trafficking of doping substances. 

Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) has successfully supported efforts to identify several victims of child sexual abuse through its sixth Victim Identification Task Force (VIDTF). The efforts have led to three victims being tentatively identified: one in Europe, one in the USA and one in Russia with another investigation ongoing to identify a European victim and an offender. VIDTF 6, hosted at Europol headquarters from 13 to 24 May 2019, saw experts from around the world working to identify victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation using advanced techniques, software and their knowledge and expertise. As a result, victims of this damaging crime have been located as living in several countries in the EU and beyond. Law enforcement authorities in those countries are currently working to finalise the identification of the children and save them from further harm. The taskforce saw 34 experts in victim identification from 24 countries and 29 agencies coming together to work on shared materials at Europol’s headquarters over 12 days. They were supported by Europol staff, all specialists and intelligence analysts in this crime area. The unique combination of collaborative work, image and video analysis meant that the experts worked through millions of files to find and exploit vital clues. Added to this is Europol’s criminal intelligence analysis conducted by experts dedicated to the taskforce bringing extra information and clues to identify offenders. The uploading of groups of linked images and video files to the International Child Sexual Exploitation Database (ICSE) hosted at INTERPOL is an integral part of the VIDTF model. This allows investigators with access to the database to contribute to the effort while it is taking place and afterwards. During VIDTF 6, the participants have uploaded 466 new datasets to ICSE and made more than 280 additions to existing datasets, therefore increasing the chances for the victims to be identified and safeguarded. Another significant part of the work is using existing techniques and developing new techniques to gather information from images and video files. Experts worked extensively on this and shared the new knowledge with their colleagues. Steven Wilson, Head of the European Cybercrime Centre at Europol: “The life and dignity of every child is of the utmost importance to us all. Over the past two weeks at Europol, we have worked closely with specialist child abuse investigators from our international partners as part of VIDTF 6 to identify the location and identities of children that are being sexually abused across the world. The combined efforts of this team of investigators can make a huge difference to the lives of children through providing information to law enforcement colleagues in specific countries enabling them to start investigations and ultimately rescue the children from abuse.”  Victim identification experts participated from law enforcement agencies in Australia, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Moldova, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, USA and INTERPOL.

23 EU Member States[1], Iceland, Norway and Switzerland, supported by Europol, conducted an extensive operation targeting trafficking in human beings for the purpose of labour exploitation. This coordinated action, which took place between 8 and 14 April 2019, is part of the EMPACT operational action plan on trafficking in human beings for 2019. Experts from law enforcement agencies, labour inspectorates, immigration services, tax authorities, social inspections services and other competent authorities joined forces to identify and investigate the labour exploitation of vulnerable workers. The action targeted different business sectors, such as transportation, agriculture, construction, food processing, catering and care provision. Participating countries adopted a multidisciplinary approach at national level that resulted in the identification of cases of trafficking in human beings, as well as violations of the labour legislation, use of forged documents and other offenses. This extensive and targeted mobilization of resources involved the checking of more than 50.000 individuals, over 17.000 vehicles, as well as the visit of 5000 business premises and other locations. The action week resulted in the arrest of 46 suspects and the identification of 90 individuals suspected of human trafficking. A further 227 persons were detained or arrested for other offenses, including illegal immigration and forgery of documents. In total, 323 potential victims of trafficking were identified. This intense operational activity has led to the launch of 100 new investigations, aiming at the identification of other suspects and victims linked to human trafficking cases across the EU. Europol contributed to the preparation of the operational activity and facilitated competent authorities with information exchange and real time checking of the information generated in the field against the Europol’s centralised databases. Europol will continue to support Member States to further develop internationally the investigations that were triggered during the action week. [1] Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Croatia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Malta, Sweden, UK

Today, the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (FIOD), in close cooperation with Europol and the authorities in Luxembourg, clamped down on one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency mixing service Bestmixer.io. Initiated back in June 2018 by the FIOD with the support of the internet security company McAfee, this investigation resulted in the seizure of six servers in the Netherlands and Luxembourg. One of the largest mixing services Bestmixer.io was one of the three largest mixing services for cryptocurrencies and offered services for mixing the cryptocurrencies bitcoins, bitcoin cash and litecoins. The service started in May 2018 and achieved a turnover of at least $200 million (approx. 27,000 bitcoins) in a year’s time and guaranteed that the customers would remain anonymous. Nature of the service A cryptocurrency tumbler or cryptocurrency mixing service is a service offered to mix potentially identifiable or 'tainted' cryptocurrency funds with others, so as to obscure the trail back to the fund's original source. The investigation so far into this case has shown that many of the mixed cryptocurrencies on Bestmixer.io had a criminal origin or destination. In these cases, the mixer was probably used to conceal and launder criminal flows of money. Follow-up The Dutch FIOD has gathered information on all the interactions on this platform in the past year. This includes IP-addresses, transaction details, bitcoin addresses and chat messages. This information will now be analysed by the FIOD in cooperation with Europol and intelligence packages will be shared with other countries.

Trafficked vehicles worth €150 000 Operation Puledro began in April 2017 when law enforcement authorities found a car stolen from Poland on Spanish roads. Investigations revealed that members of a criminal ring dismantled in 2014 were operating again, this time with a new scheme to avoid paying taxes. Criminals first bought luxury cars in Switzerland then took them to Spain, thereby evading all the checks and border controls. Once the vehicles passed their annual safety tests in Spain, the members of the network registered the cars with fake documents, pretending they bought them in Italy. After two years of investigation, police searched ten houses in Spain, arrested twenty individuals and seized eleven vehicles. It is estimated that the trafficked vehicles were worth around €150 000. Europol’s support Europol supported this operation from the beginning by cross-checking information and deploying an analyst on-the-spot with a Universal Forensic Extraction Device (UFED) which allowed real-time cross-checks of the data gathered during the course of the operation. Europol’s experts were able to extract information from nine devices, while the remaining three are being analysed at Europol’s forensic lab.

The international operation, code-named Postbox II, took place in March 2019 and involved customs experts from 22 Member States and Europol. Focusing on criminals working on both the open and the Dark Web, Postbox II led to 2320 seizures, the opening of 50 case files and identification of 30 suspects in Member States. Spearheaded by OLAF and Belgian Customs, operation Postbox II was carried out in cooperation with customs services from 22 Member States and Europol. The set-up and use of an international cyber patrol with customs services as the main actors makes the operation a first for Europe. OLAF provided participants with access to its Virtual Operation Coordination Unit, a secure communication system facilitating intelligence exchange in real time. Europol provided on the spot deployment during the days of action at OLAF’s headquarters in Brussels to assist with the crosschecking of data and forensic support. In the initial phase of the operation, customs authorities checked mail and courier service packages for prohibited items. More than 500 packages were seized in Belgium only, followed by Italy with 460 and Ireland with 304 seizures. What followed was the assembly of an expert cyber patrol which raided both the open web and the dark net, as well as social media sites, in search of the perpetrators of the crimes. Investigators used special software and techniques to pierce the sellers' online veil of anonymity. The main findings reveal that Asian e-commerce platforms are still responsible for the majority of counterfeit sales. Drug trafficking takes place mainly through the Dark Web, where technology is used to keep buyers and sellers anonymous. The success of operation Postbox II is built on the shared expertise of all participating parties. Law enforcement bodies, working together at a pan-European level, make it increasingly difficult for fraudsters and traffickers to break the law and evade justice. Background The illegal trade in endangered animal and plant species (CITES) damages the environment and threatens the biodiversity of our planet. CITES is a priority area for European customs authorities. Investments made in new technology to identify online platforms used for this type of traffic are vital to facilitating legal and sustainable trade, whilst ensuring that illicit trade can be identified and intercepted.   The trade of counterfeit products results in vast illicit profits and significant losses of tax revenues. The smuggling of counterfeit products harms the European economy, damages legitimate business and stifles innovation, putting many jobs at risk. Counterfeiting also poses serious risks to health and safety, as well as the environment.

As one of their annual flagships training events, Europol and CEPOL together with the Polish Forensic Institute (CLKP) organised between 13-24 May 2019 the advanced training course on dismantling illicit synthetic drugs laboratories at the premises of the Polish Training Academy/ITCCCL. This training was attended by 32 participants from 22 EU Member States, Iceland and Europol. Experts from Europol’s EU Drugs and Organised Crime Unit,  together with their counterparts from Belgium, Poland and the Netherlands as well as partner EU agencies such as the EMCDDA conducted the training to enhance the knowledge on the methodology and risks potentially encountered by law enforcement and forensic officers during the dismantling of illicit synthetic drugs/NPS laboratories. The objectives of the course were to recognise the production methods of illicit drugs, especially synthetic substances; to identify the production equipment/chemicals seized in the production units; implement precautions and safety measures to protect themselves during raid operations on illicit drug laboratories, including decontamination process; to plan and organise future raids as well as the collection of evidence and to understand the new trends and developments in the area of synthetic drugs. The participants also carried out a series of practical exercises in real-life conditions, including in a simulated illicit synthetic drugs laboratory environment.

An unprecedented, international law enforcement operation has dismantled a complex, globally operating and organised cybercrime network. The criminal network used GozNym malware in an attempt to steal an estimated $100 million from more than 41 000 victims, primarily businesses and their financial institutions. A criminal Indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh, USA charges ten members of the GozNym criminal network with conspiracy to commit the following: infecting victims’ computers with GozNym malware designed to capture victims’ online banking login credentials; using the captured login credentials to fraudulently gain unauthorised access to victims’ online bank accounts; stealing money from victims’ bank accounts and laundering those funds using U.S. and foreign beneficiary bank accounts controlled by the defendants.     Over the course of the international operation, searches were conducted in Bulgaria, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. Criminal prosecutions have been initiated in Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and the United States. This operational success is a result of the international law enforcement cooperation between participating EU Member States (Bulgaria and Germany) as well as Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and the United States (in alphabetical order). Europol, the European Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation as well as Eurojust, the European Union's Judicial Cooperation Unit supported the case. This operation showcases how an international effort to share evidence and initiate criminal prosecutions can lead to successful operations in multiple countries. Cybercrime as a service The GozNym network exemplified the concept of “cybercrime as a service,” with different criminal services such as bulletproof hosters, money mules networks, crypters, spammers, coders, organizers, and technical support. The defendants advertised their specialised technical skills and services on underground, Russian-speaking online criminal forums.  The GozNym network was formed when these individuals were recruited from the online forums by the GozNym leader who controlled more than 41 000 victim computers infected with GozNym malware. The leader of the GozNym criminal network, along with his technical assistant, are being prosecuted in Georgia by the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia. See the infographic Highly Specialised and International Criminal Network A member of the network who encrypted GozNym malware to enable it to avoid detection by anti-virus tools and protective software on victims’ computers is being prosecuted in Moldova by the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Moldova and the General Police Inspectorate of the Republic of Moldova. Another member from Bulgaria was already arrested by the Bulgarian authorities and extradited to the United States in December 2016 to face prosecution in Pittsburgh.  His primary role in the conspiracy was that of a “casher” or “account takeover specialist” who used victims’ stolen online banking credentials captured by GozNym malware to access victims’ online bank accounts and attempt to steal victims’ money. Several members of the network provided money-laundering services and were known as “cash-outs” or “drop masters.”  These individuals, including two from Russia and one from Ukraine, provided fellow members of the conspiracy with access to bank accounts they controlled that were designated to receive stolen funds from GozNym victims’ online bank accounts. The five Russian nationals charged in the Indictment remain on the run.  In addition to the two “drop masters” referenced above, these defendants include the developer of GozNym malware who oversaw its creation, development, management and leasing to other cybercriminals.  Another Russian GozNym member conducted spamming operations on behalf of the conspiracy.  The spamming operations involved the mass distribution of GozNym malware through “phishing” emails.  The phishing emails were designed to appear legitimate to entice the victim recipients into opening them and clicking on a malicious link or attachment which facilitated the downloading of GozNym onto the victims’ computers.  Another Russian-born member of the network was a “casher” or “account takeover specialist.”  Like the Bulgarian defendant, he used victims’ stolen online banking credentials captured by GozNym malware to access victims’ online bank accounts and attempt to steal victims’ money through electronic funds transfers into bank accounts controlled by fellow conspirators.  Avalanche Network Bulletproof hosting services were provided to the GozNym criminal network by an administrator of the “Avalanche” network.  The Avalanche network provided services to more than 200 cybercriminals, and hosted more than twenty different malware campaigns, including GozNym.  The administrator’s apartment in Poltava, Ukraine, was searched in November 2016 during a German-led operation to dismantle the network’s servers and other infrastructure.  Through the coordinated efforts being announced today, this alleged cybercriminal is now facing prosecution in Ukraine for his role in providing bulletproof hosting services to the GozNym criminal network.  The prosecution will be conducted by the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine and the National Police of Ukraine. The whole operation was conducted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania, the FBI’s Pittsburgh Field Office, the Public Prosecutor’s Office Verden (Germany), the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia, Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine, Office of the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Moldova, Office of the General Prosecutor of Bulgaria, the Luneburg Police of Germany, Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, National Police of Ukraine, General Police Inspectorate of the Republic of Moldova, and Bulgaria’s General Directorate for Combatting Organized Crime.  Europol and Eurojust played critical roles in supporting this coordinated law enforcement operation. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs also provided significant assistance.

Pickpocketing has established itself as an ubiquitous phenomenon, driving crime numbers and affecting the perceived security of citizens all over Europe. Although sometimes still considered petty crime, a huge share of the offences are committed by highly professional groups, who use their mobility across borders to challenge established law enforcement practices and often gain millions of illegal profit. While the group leaders use this money to finance a luxury lifestyle, many of the acting pickpockets, among them also minors, are exploited “foot soldiers” and not seldom victims of trafficking of human beings. It has, more than ever, become necessary for law enforcement to coordinate and cooperate on an international level, focussing on the structures of the groups, including instigators and facilitators as well as carrying out financial investigations with the aim to identify beneficiaries and recover assets. As a follow-up to previous conferences, Europol once again hosted and supported the European Pickpocketing Conference, organised and conducted by Germany's Munich Police Headquarters, from 6 to 8th of May at Europol's headquarters in The Hague. More than 170 experts from police, prosecution offices and universities, representing Europol as well as the following 23 European countries participated in the event: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Chile also sent two delegates to support the European countries in tackling this phenomenon. More and more offenders are travelling to Europe from outside the continent to commit property crime, which is why the Chilean presence was of great value for the European pickpocketing investigators. In an effort to combat organised pickpocketing crime, participants shared experience gained from investigations conducted against mobile organised crime groups in their respective countries. Several operations against specific groups of pickpockets were presented, displaying not only the need for, but also the success of tight collaboration between the European states affected. The participants also exchanged knowledge in several workshops on different pickpocketing-related issues. Among the topics were best practice tactics, prevention and technological innovations, but also more abstract subjects focussing on psychological aspects, such as new approaches to behavioural science. Along with the presentations and discussions, some officers took part in a hands-on workshop that was carried out in the streets Amsterdam. The aim of the conference was to facilitate and encourage an even stronger international cooperation. All participants agreed to further strengthen existing networks for exchanging information and to support each other in investigations, operations and regarding strategic approaches.

The two suspected administrators of a website known as DeepDotWeb have been arrested on 6 May 2019 in Paris, France and Israel. Authorities in the US have charged the two individuals after an internationally coordinated operation today, supported by Europol. At the same time, the DeepDotWeb website was seized by law enforcement and judicial authorities. The two suspects, both Israeli citizens, have been charged by a US federal jury with money laundering conspiracy, relating to millions of dollars in kickbacks they received for purchases of fentanyl, heroin and other illegal goods, by individuals referred to dark web marketplaces by DeepDotWeb. The two suspects had allegedly owned and operated DeepDotWeb since 2013. The website provided users with direct access to numerous online dark web marketplaces, where vendors sold illegal drugs, firearms, malicious software and hacking tools, stolen financial information and payment cards and other illegal counterfeit goods. It is estimated that the website referred hundreds of thousands of users to dark web marketplaces. The two men are suspected of receiving kickback payments, representing a portion of the proceeds from each purchase of illegal goods made on a dark web marketplace linked to the DeepDotWeb site. The payments were made in virtual currency and paid into a bitcoin wallet controlled by DeepDotWeb. To conceal the illegal proceeds, they transferred the money to other bitcoin accounts and to bank accounts they controlled in the name of shell companies. In total, more than 8 150 bitcoins in kickback payments were received. Due to bitcoin’s fluctuating exchange rate, the value of the DeepDotWeb bitcoin wallet amounted to approximately €7,5 million, when adjusted for the trading value of bitcoin at the time of each transaction. This case was led by the US Department of Justice and was brought in conjunction with the Joint Criminal Opioid Darknet Enforcement (J-CODE) Team within the FBI’s Hi-Tech Organized Crime Unit. Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (Dark Web Team) provided operational support to the investigation, as did law enforcement in France, Germany (German Federal Criminal Police Office, Polizeidirektion Zwickau and Saxon Police), the Netherlands (Dutch National Police), the United Kingdom (National Crime Agency), Brazil (Federal Police Cyber Division) and Israel (Israeli National Police). Only a few days after the announcement of the takedown of two prolific dark web markets (Wall Street Market and Valhalla), this is yet another law enforcement success in the fight against the sale of illegal goods on the dark web.

Europol has supported Spain in dismantling a criminal organisation providing large-scale crypto money laundering services to other criminal organisations. The criminals carried out several money laundering schemes involving the transfer from fiat currency to virtual assets to hide the illegal origin of the proceeds. Some of the identified modi operandi used crypto ATMs and smurfing, a criminal method used to split illicit proceeds into smaller sums and placing these small amounts into the financial system to avoid suspicious transaction reporting. The Spanish Civil Guard (Guardia Civil) arrested eight people and charged eight more for involvement in the crypto money laundering ring. Seven houses were searched, including a money exchange office and an indoor cannabis cultivation plant. Eleven vehicles, €16 800, close to 200 cannabis plants, two crypto ATMs, computers, devices, jewels and relevant documents were seized. Spanish authorities froze four ‘cold wallets’ and 20 ‘hot wallets’, to which €9 million was transferred, as well as several bank accounts. Some of the identified modi operandi were: The organisation managed a cryptocurrency exchange business, including two crypto ATMs to deposit criminal cash and transform it into cryptocurrency for other criminal groups; Cash pick-ups carried out by cash-carriers followed by smurfing techniques to deposit the criminal cash in several bank accounts controlled by the organisation. The funds were moved through several accounts in the process of layering. Afterwards, the money was exchanged into cryptocurrency; Large transfers to bank accounts controlled by the organisation coming from corporate entities owned by gangs using their criminal money laundering services. Immediate overseas transfers were then wired to crypto exchange platforms.   The operation was a follow-up of operation Guatuzo also supported by Europol in which 23 people were arrested in summer 2018 in Spain and Colombia. Europol supported the investigation by facilitating the exchange of information. On the action day, Europol experts were deployed to Spain to allow for real-time exchange of information and cross-checks of the data gathered in the course of the action against Europol’s databases. In the European Union Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment (SOCTA) 2017, Europol stated that an increasing number of individual criminal entrepreneurs offer Crime as a Service (CaaS). The online trade in services enables individual criminals to operate their own criminal business without the need for the infrastructures maintained by ‘traditional’ organised crime groups.   In 2010 the European Union set up a four-year Policy Cycle to ensure greater continuity in the fight against serious international and organised crime. In 2017 the Council of the EU decided to continue the EU Policy Cycle for the 2018 - 2021 period. It aims to tackle the most significant threats posed by organised and serious international crime to the EU. This is achieved by improving and strengthening cooperation between the relevant services of EU Member States, institutions and agencies, as well as non-EU countries and organisations, including the private sector where relevant. Criminal finances and money laundering is one of the priorities for the Policy Cycle.

Since 2016, the Criminological Research Institute of Lower Saxony (KFN) has been conducting research to highlight the importance of the link between domestic burglaries and organised crime. As one of the partners of the project, Europol cooperated with the KFN by providing interviews, expertise and carrying out comprehensive analyses of cases in this particular crime area. On 25 April, the results of the study were presented at a conference in Hannover, Germany. The study, which is partly funded by the EU Internal Security Fund, shows that groups of perpetrators are composed in different ways: loose networks; flat-structured Mobile Organised Crime Groups (MOCGs); MOCGs with a strict hierarchy; family clans; mafia-type structures, with particular reference to Georgian groups (albeit, more rarely). The study clearly highlights that the perpetrators of organised burglaries come from the organised crime area and are active all over the world. Despite a decrease in the number of cases in the area of domestic burglary in Germany, cross-border organised property crime continues to be present in Europe and, therefore, international police cooperation needs to be further promoted and embedded to tackle the groups behind these crimes. At the conference, Europol’s Deputy Executive Director, Oldřich Martinů, reported on Europol’s efforts and achievements in this field of crime. In his statement during the event, Mr Martinů emphasised the efforts being made at EU-level to continue providing EU Member States with the best possible support in combating this international crime. The study is available in both English and German.

Two prolific dark web marketplaces have been taken down in simultaneous global operations, supported by Europol: the Wall Street Market and the Silkkitie (known as the Valhalla Marketplace) Those responsible for the world’s second largest illegal online market in the dark web, Wall Street Market, were also arrested in Germany, and two of the highest-selling suppliers of narcotics were arrested in US. Finnish authorities shut down Silkkitie earlier this year. When the same traders moved their activities to another illegal trade site on Tor, German authorities brought their illegal activities to an end The German Federal Criminal Police (Bundeskriminalamt) shut down the Wall Street Market, under the authority of the German Public Prosecutor’s office. They were supported by the Dutch National Police (Politie), Europol, Eurojust and various US government agencies (Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, Homeland Security Investigations, US Postal Inspection Service, and the US Department of Justice). The Silkkitie (known as the Valhalla Marketplace) and its contents was also seized by Finnish Customs (Tulli) in close cooperation with the French National Police (La Police Nationale Française) and Europol. Europol was assisted by Bitdefender, an internet security company advising Europol's European Cybercrime Centre (EC3).  Europol supported coordinated law enforcement approach across Europe and the US was key to the success of these two investigations. Europol’s Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle, commented: “These two investigations show the importance of law enforcement cooperation at an international level and demonstrate that illegal activity on the dark web is not as anonymous as criminals may think.” Over 1 150 000 users and 5 400 vendors on the Wall Street Market The online marketplace Wall Street market was the world's second largest dark web market, enabling the trade in drugs (including cocaine, heroin, cannabis and amphetamines), stolen data, fake documents and malicious software. The illegal platform was exclusively accessible via the Tor network in the so-called Darknet and aimed at international trade in criminal goods. Most recently, more than 63 000 sales offers were placed on the online marketplace and more than 1 150 000 customer accounts and more than 5 400 sellers registered. For payment, the users of the online marketplace used the crypto currencies Bitcoin and Monero. The alleged marketplace officials are said to have received commission payments of 2 to 6 percent of the sales value for the settlement of illegal sales of the platform. This operation lead by the German authorities has seen the arrest of three suspects and as part of the house searches carried out, the police officers seized over €550 000 in cash, alongside cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Monero in 6-digit amounts, several vehicles and other evidences, such as computers and data storage. In the US, during the investigation by the Attorney General in Los Angeles, two of the highest-selling suppliers of narcotics were arrested.  Finnish Customs seized entire web server and contents of Valhalla The Silkkitie has been operating on the The Onion Router (Tor) network since 2013. Based on the findings of the investigation, Finnish Customs also made a significant Bitcoin seizure.  For several years, narcotics and other illicit goods have been sold via this marketplace. Silkkitie is one of the oldest and internationally best-known Tor trade sites. After the Silkkitie (Valhalla) site was shut down by the authorities, some of the Finnish narcotics traders moved their activities to other illegal trade sites in the Tor network, such as Wall Street Market.  Dedicated Dark Web Team in Europol’s EC3 One of Europol’s initiatives is to create a coordinated law enforcement approach to tackle crime on the dark web with the participation of law enforcement agencies from across EU Member States, operational third parties and other relevant partners, such as Eurojust.   To achieve this goal, Europol has established a dedicated Dark Web Team to work together with EU partners and law enforcement across the globe to reduce the size of this underground illegal economy. It will deliver a complete, coordinated approach:  sharing information; providing operational support and expertise in different crime areas; developing tools, tactics and techniques to conduct dark web investigations; identifying threats and targets.  The team also aims to enhance joint technical and investigative actions, organise training and capacity-building initiatives, together with prevention and awareness-raising campaigns – a 360° strategy against criminality on the dark web. A shared commitment across the law enforcement community worldwide and a coordinated approach by law enforcement agencies has once again proved their effectiveness. The scale of the operation at Europol demonstrates the global commitment to tackling the use of the dark web as a means to commit crime. 

On 17 April 2019, some 400 police officers from the Romanian Directorate for Investigation of Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) and the Dutch National Police, with the support of Europol and Eurojust, swooped on suspects in both these countries believed to be part of an organised crime group involved in fake carrier fraud. The targeted criminals are believed to have caused damages estimated at €2 million for the period 2017-2019. 12 house searches took place in the Netherlands, and 46 in Romania, resulting in the arrest of 6 individuals. The sting follows a complex investigation initiated in March 2018 looking into the activities of this criminal network, composed mainly of Romanian nationals. The members of the OCG ‘spoofed’ real e-mail addresses of cargo companies, pretending to be the companies’ representatives. They then received offers for cargo services from various victims, signed the counterfeit contracts, and scheduled the date and place of the cargo delivery. Once they received the cargo, the members of the OCG appropriated the prepayment for the cargo service and the cargo itself, using forged documents and vehicles with fake licence plates. The stolen cargo, which was later resold within the European Union at a lower price, contained a variety of goods, ranging from solar panels to aluminium bars and clothing. Europol supported the investigation for the past year by facilitating the exchange of information. On the action day, Europol experts were deployed to Romania to allow for real-time exchange of information and cross-checks of the data gathered in the course of the action against Europol’s databases.

Beyond the crime: your health and safety at stake. As has been the case for years, Europol is taking part in World Intellectual Property Day. The fight against intellectual property crime is of high importance to our agency as it not only impacts businesses and economy, but also the health and safety of many European consumers. In 2018 Europol’s IPC3 (Intellectual Property Crime Coordinated Coalition), supported and coordinated more than 45 operations related to the trade of fake pharmaceuticals, food and beverages, pesticides, luxury goods, car spare parts, IPTV, music and movie piracy. Europol also provided Member States with on–the-spot operational and forensic support more than 20 times during their operations and organised upwards of 30 operational meetings. On 4 April 2019, Europol’s Intellectual Property Crime Coordinated Coalition (IPC3) was presented with the Intellectual Property Excellence Award in Enforcement from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). The award is in recognition for the outstanding contribution to the recording industry worldwide related to the unit's activity in anti-piracy enforcement. With funding from the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EU IPO), Europol’s IPC3 could intensify its fight against intellectual property crime. By buying counterfeited products, consumers support huge financial benefits to criminal organisations.  They may not even realise the serious problems to health and safety when using counterfeit products like pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, electrical devices or even car spare parts. Spare car parts Worldwide, the trade value of fake spare parts was up to $10 billion and spare car parts are also frequently traded in the European Union. Very often fake spare car parts are offered on websites at knock-down prices — so order your spare parts on official websites or through registered dealers. If not, fake spare car parts can pose serious safety risks both to you and other road users.  

After almost 18 months of investigation, Europol supported the State Criminal Police Office Vienna (Landeskriminalamt Wien, LKA) in bringing down a Serbian organised criminal group involved in a series of residential burglaries and other illegal activities across Europe. In total, 12 members of the Serbian mobilised organised criminal group (MOCG) were identified during LKA’s investigation. The criminal group carried out more than 31 residential burglaries and were detected by police services in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany and Switzerland. The group was well-organised, operated across Europe and regularly swapped its members. The MOCG often used minors to carry out their criminal activities. Two female members of the Serbian MOCG were arrested while attempting to commit another theft in Austria. The two women initially claimed they were underage and gave false identities to the authorities, which is why they were released shortly after by the Austrian authorities. Later on, police determined their true identities and European Arrest Warrants were issued for their arrest by the Vienna Public Prosecutor’s Office. The women were found to be 16 and 18 years old and were apprehended in Germany in May 2018 when committing another burglary. In October 2018 they were delivered from the German judicial authorities to Austria. In the meantime, two more members of the Serbian MOCG were arrested in Belgium when committing similar cases as they had done in Austria. A driver involved with the gang was identified in October 2017 by the Austrian authorities and a European Arrest Warrant was issued for his arrest.   Europol’s role During 2018 Europol organised, chaired and funded two operational meetings in Vienna between representatives from Austria, Germany and Switzerland. The first meeting established that the criminal group had been carrying out similar illegal activities across various Member States. The second meeting brought together Belgium, France, Germany, Serbia and Switzerland with the Austrian Criminal intelligence Service (Bundeskriminalamt, BK.), to share information and strengthen cooperation in the fight against property crime. This resulted in the creation of an analysis report, which led to a conviction on organised crime instead of the usual gang crime penalty. This is a milestone in domestic burglary as this type of conviction on the matter is rare. Europol supported the investigation from the beginning by providing operational and analytical support, this helped to identify links from the offences made in several EU Member States, such as Austria, Belgium, France, Germany and Switzerland.  Europol Analysis Project (AP) FURTUM, is responsible for all areas of property crime such as major burglaries, armed robberies (banks, jewellery, money transporters and depots), motor vehicle crimes, cargo crime, metal theft, organised pickpocketing.   In 2010 the EU set up a four-year Policy Cycle to ensure greater continuity in the fight against serious international and organised crime. In March 2017 the Council of the EU decided to continue the EU Policy Cycle for organised and serious international crime for the 2018 - 2021 period. This multiannual Policy Cycle aims to tackle the most significant threats posed by organised and serious international crime to the EU in a coherent and methodological manner. This is achieved by improving and strengthening cooperation between the relevant services of EU Member States, institutions and agencies, as well as non-EU countries and organisations, including the private sector where relevant. Organised property crime is one of the priorities for the EU Policy Cycle.

On 16 and 17 April, Europol and the Italian Anti-Mafia Investigation Directorate (Direzione Investigativa Antimafia) are hosting the first operational high-level conference Countering Strategies Against Transnational Organised Crime as part of the @ON Operational Network to counter mafia-style serious and organised crime groups in the European Union. Conference participants are high-ranking police officers from EU Member States and non-EU countries. Europol’s Deputy Executive Director, Wil van Gemert, is opening the conference and the Director General of the Italian Anti-Mafia Investigation Directorate, Giuseppe Governale, and Jari Liukku, Head of Europol’s European Serious and Organised Crime Centre, are chairing the conference. The highest risk for EU internal security Currently, organised crime constitutes the highest risk for EU internal security. This is the result of long-term development. Over recent years, organised crime has not stopped evolving. At the same time, results of asset tracing and confiscation are still at an extremely low level. Europol’s report ‘Does crime still pay?’ concluded that from 2012 to 2014 just 2.2% of the estimated proceeds of crime were seized or frozen and only 1.1% ultimately confiscated across the EU. Organised crime groups take advantage of this gap in law enforcement resources and continuously look for opportunities to expand their illicit operations. To increase operational impact by dismantling increasingly poly-criminal organised crime groups, Europol is developing an agile operational support model, building on its existing experience to allow the identification of poly-criminals, High Value Targets (HVT), new criminal trends and crime hubs.　 Organised crime groups in the 21st century are highly diverse, flexible and fast Organised crime affecting the EU is highly diverse. It ranges from large ‘traditional’ groups to smaller ones and loose networks supported by individual criminals, who are hired and collaborate spontaneously. Many organised crime groups are highly flexible and display great adaptability in the speed with which they adjust their modi operandi or whole business models to changes in the environment. Their criminal activities are increasingly complex and require a variety of skills and technical expertise. Top-level organised crime groups also use corruption to infiltrate public and private sector organisations, relying on bribery, conflicts of interest, trading in influence and collusion to facilitate their criminal activities. The objective of the conference is to achieve advanced international operational police cooperation by exchanging information, monitoring high-level criminals and addressing international investigations.　 The @ON Operational Network The @ON Operational Network strengthens international police cooperation on mafia-style criminal groups, making it possible for Member States to request, in coordination with Europol, the deployment of specialised investigators. The Italian Anti-Mafia Investigation Directorate prepared the project and were supported by Europol and authorities from Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain. The main criminal groups to be addressed are mafia-style Italian organised crime groups, Eurasian and Albanian criminal networks and Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs. Within the @ON Operational Network, the ONNET project, financed by the European Commission for 24 months, aims to provide operational support with specialised investigative units in Member States and relevant third parties accredited by Europol. Investigators from the project who are specialised in this criminal phenomenon can be deployed to the Member States involved. The project was officially launched on 1 November 2018 at Europol’s headquarters in The Hague, the Netherlands. General Governale leads the project together with the international partners of ONNET and Europol representatives.

The suspected criminal gang is accused of murder, trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation, money laundering and for being members of an organised crime group. The network, active in northern Europe since 2009, ran its human trafficking operation in Denmark and Poland. The criminal group had evaded Polish law enforcement authorities – the Polish Central Bureau of Investigation and prosecutors from Gdansk – and shifted their criminal activities to large-scale marijuana cultivation upon moving to Spain to fund their illegal activities back in the two other Member States. Criminals tattooed their victims Over the course of several years, the criminal gang was one of the main targets for Polish authorities, who considered them a highly specialised and violent group: usually armed with knives, machetes and baseball bats. The network forced their trafficking victims into prostitution in Denmark and Poland and tattooed them to identify their ‘owner’. Five arrests in Spain and two arrests in Poland Based on the information gathered after a two-year investigation by the Polish authorities, Europol was called this year to support this transnational and demanding operation by coordinating information exchange and establishing direct contacts between the investigators in Denmark, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain. This international cooperation was essential to dismantle this poly-criminal organised network operating in different countries. On the action day, which happened simultaneously in Poland and Spain, Europol deployed one of its experts to assist the Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) on-the-spot with checks of the evidence found in searches with the information stored in Europol’s centralised databases. In two house searches carried out in Spain, law enforcement officers seized over 2 500 marijuana plants, 220 kg of hashish, a cannabis plantation and several electronic devices. As a result, five suspects were detained in Spain and two in Poland.     Watch the Video 

The Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) with the support of Europol experts in weapons and explosives arrested one individual in Seville on suspicion of being a member of a firearms-trafficking network with several links to North America. The second phase of operation Alpes is the follow-up phase of an original investigation that saw the involvement of the the Federal Agency for State Protection and Counter Terrorism of Austria and the ringleader of the criminal network detained. The investigations after the first phase revealed that the criminal group had different facilitators in the United States in illegally supplying the ring with parts of weapons to assemble and produce new ones. The Spanish National Police understand that the detained suspect is one of the network’s main perpetrators and is accused of illicit firearms trafficking and for being a member of an organised crime group. Europol’s support Europol experts played a key role during this phase of the operation by exchanging information and cross-checking data. A mobile office was also deployed to Spain for on-the-spot support on the day of the operation. Operation Alpes was launched as part of the operational action plan EMPACT illicit firearms trafficking, which strives to respond to the threat originating from firearms trafficking, as reflected in the EU Policy Cycle 2018-2021.   Watch the video In 2010 the European Union set up a four-year Policy Cycle to ensure greater continuity in the fight against serious international and organised crime. In March 2017 the Council of the EU decided to continue the EU Policy Cycle for organised and serious international crime for the 2018 - 2021 period. This multiannual Policy Cycle aims to tackle the most significant threats posed by organised and serious international crime to the EU in a coherent and methodological manner. This is achieved by improving and strengthening cooperation between the relevant services of EU Member States, institutions and agencies, as well as non-EU countries and organisations, including the private sector where relevant. Illicit firearms trafficking is one of the priorities for the Policy Cycle. It aims to disrupt OCGs involved in the illicit trafficking, distribution and use of firearms.