On Tuesday 30 January 2024, the SEACOP-supported Royal Montserrat Police Service successfully intercepted a small yacht carrying 19 individuals in a suspected case of human trafficking. Alerted by intelligence services, the Royal Montserrat Police Marine Unit, which was established with SEACOP’s support in 2015 and has continued to receive training from the project ever since,…
23.01.24 – Peruvian Gold Mining Gangs Launch Increasingly Brazen Attacks. The growth of gold mining gangs in Peru’s La Libertad province has led to a deteriorating security situation, with unprecedented attacks on security forces and one of the country’s largest mining companies on the rise. A group of approximately 100 armed actors stormed a police…
18.01.24 – Convicted – the east London money launderer who took payments for small boats crossings. A man who laundered money for people smuggling networks involved in small boats crossings has been found guilty, following a National Crime Agency investigation. Iranian Asghar Gheshalghian, 48, ran an unregistered money services business from an office block in…
10.01.24 – Ecuador declares war on armed gangs after TV station attacked on air. Ecuador’s president has ordered that criminal gangs be “neutralised” after days of violence culminated in an attack on a television studio.Masked gunmen broke into public television channel TC’s live studio during a broadcast, forcing staff to the floor. Police made 13…
20.12.23 – Why Have Ecuador’s Drug Trafficking Gangs Turned to Extortion? The number of extortion cases recorded in Ecuador has skyrocketed over the past year, suggesting that the country’s fragmenting criminal gangs are seeking new sources of income. Extortion in Ecuador rose by more than 65% between 2022 and November 2023 and by almost 400%…
