News briefing week of 5 July

06/07 315kg of heroin bound for Australia were seized in Thailand. While still of unclear origin, $29 million worth of heroin were seized in the biggest Thai Customs seizure this year. The seizure comes amid concerns that production may surge in neighboring Myanmar, the region’s main supplier of illicit drugs, because of severe instability following…

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News briefing week of 28 June

29/06 After being arrested on 15 October 2020, by the British National Crime Agency and West Midlands Police, three men were sentenced to prison for running a three-floor cannabis farm in an abandoned nightclub in Coventry. In the largest and most sophisticated cannabis factory ever found by the NCA, police seized 1500 cannabis plants, a…

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News briefing week of 7 June

08/06 European and Australian police together with FBI seize weapons, drugs and $148m in cash in operation Trojan Shield. More than 800 suspected members of organised crime gangs were arrested in 18 countries, along with tonnes of drugs, cryptocurrencies, weapons and luxury cars seized. It relied on An0m, a supposedly secure encrypted messaging app developed…

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News Briefing – Week of 24 May 2021

26/05 The Council set the 2022-2025 EU priorities for the fight against serious and organised crime through the European multi-disciplinary platform against criminal threats (EMPACT). EU member states identified 10 crime priorities: High-risk criminal networks, Cyber-attacks, Trafficking in human beings, Child sexual exploitation, Migrant smuggling, Drugs trafficking, Fraud, economic and financial crimes, Organised property crime,…

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News Briefing – Week of 03 May 2021

03/05 Spanish law enforcement seized more than seven tons of hashish in one of the biggest drug busts so far this year. Three people were arrested during an operation that intercepted a drug haul of 200 packets of hash. 04/05 Frontex and OSCE exchanged views on the prevention of document fraud in South Eastern Europe.…

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News Briefing – Week of 15 March 2021

15/03 – In southern Italy, the <a href=”https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/03/italy-mob-trial-rinascita-scott-history.html”>“Rinascita-Scott” trial</a>, the first so-called “maxi trial” of the ’Ndrangheta, began on January 13. &nbsp; 15/03 – The latest ENACT paper considers solutions Africa should take to limit the proliferation of <a href=”https://enactafrica.org/research/policy-briefs/an-explosive-situation-managing-arms-caches-in-africa-the-case-of-the-recsa-region”>small arms and light weapons on the continent</a>. &nbsp; 16/03 – A joint operation of the…

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News Briefing – Week of 08 March 2021

08/03 – Ukraine border guards prevented two attempts to <a href=”https://border-security-report.com/ukraine-border-guards-prevent-groups-smuggling-cigarettes-to-romania/”>smuggle cigarettes into Romania</a>. &nbsp; 08/03 – The Brazilian criminal group <a href=”https://insightcrime.org/news/how-brazils-borders-became-more-diverse-dangerous/”>Primeiro Comando da Capital</a> has expanded exponentially, both inside Brazil and in Paraguay, over the last two years. &nbsp; 09/03 – Danish police arrested 13 individuals for their alleged role in <a href=”https://www.europol.europa.eu/newsroom/news/seizure-of-%E2%82%AC14-million-worth-of-contraband-cigarette-leads-to-13-arrests-in-danish-dutch-sting”>smuggling…

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News Briefing – Week of 01 March 2021

01/03 – In Belize, corrupt police officials have been implicated in facilitating drug flows through the nation, according to a new InSight Crime article.   01/03 – French law enforcement arrested 38 people, accused of trafficking Moldovan nationals to France for illegal labour on construction sites, providing falsified EU identification documents, and money laundering.  …

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