02/11/2020 – Hong Kong Customs Officers seized more than 500 kg of methamphetamine. The drug, believed to be worth 300 million Hong Kong dollars (33 million Euros) was discovered in a container that also contained a declared cargo of cement bags.
03/11/2020 – A joint operation between U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), the US Coast Guard (USCG) and the Puerto Rico Police resulted in the seizure of 1,497 pounds (679 kg) of cocaine from two Venezuelan flagged vessels near the southwestern coast of Puerto Rico.
03/11/2020 – The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) acting in cooperation with the European Union (EU) and the German Government, launched three transnational projects under the programme “Organised Crime: West African Response” (OCWAR): (1) fight against cybersecurity threats and cybercrime (OCWAR C); (2) combatting trafficking in drugs, human beings and firearms (OCWAR T); (3) addressing cross cutting issues such as money laundering, financing of terrorism and fraud (OCWAR M).
04/10/2020 – Europol, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom have taken part in a joint action at the European level to combat child trafficking. The operation, also supported by Frontex, took place between the 5th and 11th October 2020 and involved 12 countries. Agents arrested 388 suspected traffickers and identified 249 possible victims.
05/11/2020 –Italian Customs Officials together with the provincial command of Reggio Calabria seized 932 kilos of cocaine hidden in a container in the port of Gioia Tauro. The drug is expected to have yielded approximately 186 million Euros for the criminals involved.
05/11/2020 – The Brazilian Grupamento Tático Operacional (GTO) seized more than 800 Kg of cocaine in Tucumã, in the south-east of the country. The drugs were hidden in a truck, driven by a man who resisted arrest.
05/11/2020 – Belgian Customs and Police seized 11.5 tonnes of cocaine in Europe’s second-largest port Antwerp in Belgium. This is a record seizure with a market value estimated at 900 million Euros.
06/11/2020 – Brazilian police and tax authorities seize more than 750 kgs of cocaine in the port of Rio de Janeiro. According to the agents the cargo was destined for the port of Antwerp in Belgium and was found in four containers.
06/11/2020 – According to the report published by the International Institute for Criminal Justice and Human Rights in Syracuse, illicit drug trafficking is considered a priority by South-Eastern European countries over and above the illegal trafficking of small arms and light weapons, tobacco products, cultural goods, human trafficking and migrant smuggling.
06/11/2020 – France and India have entered into an important bilateral agreement on the prevention of drug use and the reduction of drug trafficking. The agreement provides for the strengthening of technical and operational cooperation between the two countries in order to prevent drug use and illicit drug trafficking.
06/11/2020 – The Mozambican Parliament approved the first reading of a government bill on the legal procedure for the seizure of propriety and recovery of illicitly acquired assets.
