21.11.24 – Spanish police bust gang that recruited Swedish and Danish minors as hitmen. Spanish police have dismantled a gang based in the eastern city of Alicante that allegedly recruited Swedish and Danish teenagers to carry out murders as hitmen. Police said on Wednesday they had arrested a married Swedish couple and their 15-year-old son, who recruited other teenagers via the messaging app Telegram to commit murder, and are also accused of weapons and drugs trafficking and money laundering.
21.11.24 – 25 arrests in EU-wide operation against Syrian migrant smuggling network. An EU-wide operation, led by Germany, resulted in the takedown of a large criminal network involved in migrant smuggling, weapons trafficking and document fraud along the so-called Balkan route. The investigation was conducted within the framework of a Europol Operational Taskforce, made up of authorities from Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Serbia, the United Kingdom and other European countries. Over 450 officers were deployed on the ground during the action day. Two experts from Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre supported the operation on the ground in Germany. A Joint Investigation Team, set up by Eurojust, facilitated the judicial cooperation between the countries.
20.11.24 – Reputed head of crime family campaigns for seat in Irish parliament. Gerard Hutch, named in a court case last year as head of a well-known crime family in Ireland, is seeking election to parliament, shaking up a race in inner-city Dublin that includes a former finance minister and the opposition leader. Officials confirmed last week that Hutch, better known as “The Monk”, was on the ballot for the Nov. 29 vote. Hutch said on Tuesday that he was running because he did not think the community where he grew up was properly represented.
20.11.24 – Residents in Haiti’s capital stand with police in a battle to repel the latest gang attack. Gangs launched a new attack on Haiti’s capital early Tuesday, targeting an upscale community in Port-au-Prince where gunmen clashed with residents who fought side by side with police. The attack on Petionville was led by the Viv Ansanm group, whose spokesman, Jimmy Chérizier, a gang leader and former elite police officer, had announced the plan in a video posted on social media. At least 28 suspected gang members were killed and hundreds of munitions seized, according to Lionel Lazarre, deputy spokesman for Haiti’s National Police.
18.11.24 – New Report Uncovers Scale of Exploitation of Artisanal Gold Miners to Fund War, Terrorism and Organised Crime. The Rt. Hon Dominic Raab, in partnership with the World Gold Council, today publishes a new report examining the systemic threats from the illicit trade of gold through artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM). The Silence is Golden report finds the ASGM industry, responsible for an estimated 20% of annual gold supply and about 80% of gold mining employment1, is being targeted by criminal gangs, armed groups and corrupt officials, presenting a real and present danger to international security.
