From 9th to 11th July 2024, CRIMJUST held an Investigative Case Forum in Lisbon, Portugal, focusing on strengthening cooperation between law enforcement and criminal justice practitioners from Portugal and Guinea-Bissau. The event, organised in collaboration with the UNODC Programme Office in Guinea-Bissau, AIRCOP, and INTERPOL, brought together Judicial Police and criminal justice officials to share experiences and enhance their joint efforts against drug trafficking.
The forum was inaugurated by Mr. Luís Neves, National Director of the Portuguese Judicial Police, who highlighted the relationship and mutual respect between the two nations. Ms. Kaitlin Meredith, head of UNODC’s Global Programme on Criminal Network Disruption (GPCD), underscored the importance of transcending national borders in counter-narcotic strategies due to the transnational nature of organised crime. Over the course of three days, participants discussed emerging trends in illicit drug trafficking via the Bissau-Lisbon air route, identified key threat areas, and shared key information.
Following the principle that “it takes a network to disrupt a network,” the forum aimed to strengthen relationships among key criminal justice actors through the exchange of experiences and the development of a mutual understanding of challenges. By the end of the forum, participants had pinpointed opportunities for enhanced joint efforts to tackle the threat of drug trafficking.
