The national authorities of Germany, Denmark, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, the UK and Norway, have taken down an organised crime group involved in drug trafficking. The investigation showed that a transport company based in the Netherlands was involved in smuggling large quantities of drugs to several European countries. Turkish authorities have seized…
DetailsThe Italian Carabinieri (Carabinieri) and the Italian Finance Corps (Guardia di Finanza), supported by Italian Customs, Europol and Frontex, seized 1 176 kg of cocaine worth €250 million in the Port of Gioia Tauro, southwest Italy. The shipping documents show that the container was destined for Germany. The drug was hidden in a case of…
DetailsJapanese authorities have seized a record shipment of 400kg of cocaine, worth $73 million, in the port city of Kobe. The shipment may have reached the city by mistake. Turkish authorities seized 115 kg of heroin in the Konya province. The drug was hidden in a truck. 21 police officers in Paraguay are accused of receiving bribes…
DetailsItalian interior minister Luciana Lamorgese alerted over mafia network transformation and diversification. OCGs in Italy are less high profile in recent years as they spread into new economic sectors, but they remain a threat to Italy’s institutions and economic system. The Ndrangheta mafia is estimated to weight around 54 billion euros, more than Deutsche Bank…
DetailsIn its 2019 report on cybercrime, Europol highlights that cybercriminals are becoming bolder and more innovative to circumvent law enforcement and maximize profits. One new prominent practice is crypto ransomware, targeting private organisations using phishing emails. Europol identifies crypto ransomware as the top priority threat facing European Law enforcement officials. The British government invests in…
DetailsHonduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez faces street protests calling for his ouster after a US court found his brother guilty of cocaine and weapons trafficking. The US Justice Department also concluded narcotraffickers had bribed the president and his party for his 2014 election campaign. The Financial Action Task Force, the intergovernmental body dedicated to combatting…
DetailsDrug trafficking in Central America is damaging the Amazon forest. Traffickers are cutting down trees to build illegal roads and airstrips to transport cocaine. Narco-deforestation now affects large tropical forests in Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Protected wetlands and coastal areas are also used to supply maritime routes. Environmental degradation caused by drug trafficking leads to…
DetailsThe poaching and smuggling of marine life are increasingly treated as organised crime in South Africa. Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing have traditionally been dealt with as fisheries management issues by the government, resulting in low penalties for offenders. But regional initiatives like FishFORCE, training law enforcement officers and prosecutors, have resulted in greater awareness…
DetailsIranian police have seized nine tonnes of illicit drugs destined for Europe in the province of West Azerbaijan, on the border with Turkey. The shipment, which was hidden inside a petrol tanker, comprised of 3.5 tonnes of morphine and 5.3 tonnes of opium. Weapons as well as cocaine and crystal meth were also found. Iran…
DetailsIn a new report, Human Rights Watch documents the rising violence linked to illegal deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon. Over the past five years, 28 environmental enforcement agents and indigenous people opposed to illegal logging have been killed by organised crime groups who profit from deforestation. More than 300 people have been murdered in the last…
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