17.06.24 – 6 arrested as 35 tonnes of cocaine seized at major European ports. Europol has supported the German Criminal Police (LKA Baden Wuttemberg) and German Customs (ZFA Stuttgart and ZOLL Karlsruhe) in dismantling a criminal organisation smuggling large quantities of cocaine in containers from South America to the EU via major ports, largely the ports of Hamburg (Germany), Antwerp (Belgium) and Rotterdam (Netherlands). The investigation also involved law enforcement authorities from Belgium, the Netherlands, Ecuador and Columbia. The investigation, initiated in April 2023, focused on a criminal network organising multi-tonne shipments to Europe of cocaine sourced in Ecuador and shipped from Colombia, Ecuador, Suriname, Guyana and Paraguay. Investigative leads link the group to possible additional shipments from West Africa. The criminal network operated from Germany, allegedly organising the logistics of their criminal activity through the involvement of large number of front companies, including transport companies and criminal associates such as administrative personnel and drivers. Between April and September 2023, law enforcement authorities in Belgium, Ecuador and Germany seized about 35 tonnes of cocaine linked to the activities of this criminal network.
19.06.24 – El Salvador and Argentina to ‘strengthen’ war on organised crime. Argentina and El Salvador have signed an agreement to “strengthen” the war on organised crime, both governments have announced. Security Minister Patricia Bullrich inked an accord with her Salvadorean counterpart Gustavo Villatoro, during a visit to the Central American nation. “Following the guidelines of the heads of state of El Salvador and Argentina, our President @nayibbukele and President @JMilei, we have signed with minister @PatoBullrich a working agreement between our countries, with the firm commitment of strengthening the war on organised crime,” said Villatoro in a post on the X social network. A joint press release issued by the two governments said that “spaces will be created for the specialised assessment to design strategies and develop innovative tools which help effectively fight criminal groups.”
20.06.24 – Avocado prices could spike as attacks on US workers amid Mexico cartel violence see inspections halted. The United States has halted inspections of avocados and mangoes in Mexico’s Michoacán state after two US Agriculture Department employees were attacked and detained. Two employees of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), which operates under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), were recently attacked and detained while inspecting avocados, according to the United States Embassy in Mexico. The two employees have since been released; however, the embassy wrote that APHIS has suspended the inspections of avocados and mangoes in Michoacán to ensure the safety of the agricultural inspection team.
21.06.24 – 5 arrests for sexual exploitation of Ukrainian refugees in Spain. Europol has supported the Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) in dismantling a criminal group involved in the trafficking of human beings for sexual exploitation. The suspects lured Ukrainian victims with promises to arrange for them refugee visas, financial support and work. The criminal group, active since 2020, recruited its victims online, mainly through social media platforms while presenting themselves as managers in a recruitment agency. The victims were lured with job offers for hostesses and front-of-house roles. The alleged traffickers then exploited the women, mainly Ukrainian, but also Belarusian nationals, in a prostitution club in El Ejido (Almería), Spain.
22.06.24 – Montenegro vows to crack down on organised crime after blast. Montenegro’s government has vowed to crack down on organised crime after an explosion this week at a sports centre which killed two people, in the latest outburst of organised crime-linked violence. Organised crime and corruption have persistently plagued Montenegro, which has repeatedly pledged to tackle these scourges under pressure from the European Union. The country’s National Security Council said it had adopted a series of measures late Friday night for an “urgent and decisive response to strengthening the fight against organised crime”.
