At least 44 people were arrested during an international operation that mobilized 11 countries against a criminal network of drug trafficking, money laundering and illicit enrichment, considered “one of the most dangerous” in the European Union, it was announced this Friday.
Europol (European Police Office) and Eurojust (European Union Judicial Cooperation Unit) announced that the “unprecedented” international operation resulted in the arrest of 44 suspects belonging to “a high-risk criminal network”, after a The investigation revealed that various groups are cooperating to “carry out activities inside and outside the European Union (EU).”
With the coordination of the two European agencies, which have their headquarters in The Hague (Netherlands), arrests were registered in Lithuania (7 detainees), the Czech Republic (9), France (9), Slovakia (7), Latvia (5 ) , Poland (2), Norway (2), Germany (1), Spain (1) and the United States (1).
Last Tuesday, the judicial and police authorities of the 11 countries involved in the operation carried out a total of 94 searches throughout Europe in the properties of the leaders of the criminal network and their collaborators, who were actively operating in Lithuania, Latvia, the Czech Republic , Poland, France, Germany and Slovakia.
Agents also seized large amounts of various illicit drugs, including cocaine, hashish, cannabis, and methamphetamine.
“The network is linked to the main drug trafficking organizations outside the EU. Highly flexible, these criminals quickly adapt to new methods of drug trafficking, trying to evade the law. Drug shipments were found on ships and trucks, hidden in sophisticated compartments,” Europol said.
The European agency also revealed that the criminal network in question is structured as a “business” with different groups and intermediaries, with the aim of “controlling the entire drug trafficking chain, from the organization of large drug shipments to distribution throughout Europe. and beyond”.
The director of Europol’s European Center for Serious and Organized Crime, Jari Liukku, recalled that “criminals are good at cooperating beyond borders” and assured that “the success of this operation shows how powerful and comprehensive they are” the joint initiatives of agencies from various countries against criminals. who are part of organized crime networks, “wherever they are”.
Source: Observadora
