With Eurojust support, a simultaneous operation led by the Romanian authorities took place in Romania, Germany and the United Kingdom targeting an organised criminal group accused of pimping, human trafficking, blackmail, usury and money laundering. Twenty-two suspects were detained in Romania.
With overnight support from Eurojust, the alleged suspect of the murder of the well-known Argentinian rugby player, Federico Martin Aramburu, was arrested in the early morning of 23 March in Hungary. The Agency enabled the rapid execution of a European Arrest Warrant, before the end of the legal preventive custody.
Authorities from France, Germany and Luxemburg carried out extensive measures to freeze EUR 120 million worth of assets linked to the investigation of a money laundering case in Lebanon, during an action day on 25 March. Five properties in Germany and France were seized as well as several bank accounts.
In a coordinated operation against large-scale call centre fraud and money laundering, the authorities in Latvia and Lithuania have detained 108 persons with support from Eurojust and Europol. Eurojust assisted in setting up a joint investigation team into the case at very short notice.
In light of the 20 years jubilee of Eurojust, the French Ministry of Justice organised a high-level conference on cross-border criminal justice cooperation. The event focused on the role the European Arrest Warrant plays in countering terrorism and how to guarantee a good balance between its effectiveness and fundamental rights.
Eurojust supported 10.105 cross-border criminal investigations in 2021, reaching the highest number of cases since operations began 20 years ago. This important milestone of more than 10.000 cases represents an almost 50-fold increase compared with 2002. Eurojust’s casework load rose by 15% compared with 2020.
Our Agency is looking to appoint a leader with high levels of personal integrity, political savvy and diplomacy. The ideal candidate should have a proven track record in leading and managing change, while delivering high-quality administrative support within resource constraints. The deadline for applications is 28 April.
Eurojust has hosted a special meeting of EU Ministers of Justice, organised together with the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union, to discuss the role of the Agency in coordinating investigations into war crimes, crimes against humanity and other core international crimes allegedly committed in Ukraine.
The responsible national authorities of Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine signed a JIT agreement on 25 March to enable the exchange of information and facilitate investigations into war crimes, crimes against humanity and other core crimes. Participation in the JIT may be extended to other EU Member States, third countries or other third parties in due course.
For the first time, the new Technical Assistance Facility (TAF) tool of the EuroMed Justice Programme has been used. The French Embassy in Amman, the French Ministry of Justice and the Jordan judicial authorities organised a cross-regional workshop to counter online hate speech.
The new EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Ilkka Salmi has visited Eurojust for the first time since taking up his duties, to discuss ongoing and future cooperation. Mr Salmi was received by President Ladislav Hamran and Chair of the Counter-Terrorism Working Group and National Member for Belgium Hilde Vandevoorde.
Mr Zacharias Symeou has taken up his duties as the new National Member for Cyprus at Eurojust. Mr Symeou previously worked as a prosecutor at the Law Office of the Republic of Cyprus and has extensive experience in prosecution services and as a lawyer in the private sector.
Prosecutors General of the EU Member States and South Partner Countries have agreed on the first cross-regional Strategic Plan for judicial cooperation. The plan, encompassing six strategic goals for the period 2022-2025, was adopted during the third EuroMed meeting of the Forum of Prosecutors General at Eurojust.
'The European Commission's package for Security and Justice in the Digital World brings judicial cooperation to 21st century standards. The Judicial Counter-Terrorism Register will boost cross-border information exchange in ongoing terrorism cases, resulting in better coordination between the EU Member States.'
The SIRIUS project, a cross-border intelligence-sharing platform co-implemented by Europol and Eurojust, in close partnership with the European Judicial Network, has concluded its fourth annual conference, with more than 800 participants from law enforcement and judicial authorities, plus representatives from the digital technology sector.
Slovenia has concluded its Presidency of the Council of the European Union with a busy Justice and Home Affairs agenda, during which Eurojust has cooperated very closely with the Slovenian authorities.
Eurojust has assisted the Romanian and German authorities in dismantling an organised crime group which was involved in migrant smuggling from Serbia through Romania. During an action day in Romania, 27 suspects were identified and 19 places were searched.
With support from Eurojust and Europol, authorities in Germany, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Netherlands and Ukraine have taken down a major fraudulent online German investment platform which defrauded victims for at least EUR 15 million.
Police forces across the world have arrested 150 alleged suspects involved in buying or selling illicit goods on the dark web as part of a coordinated international operation involving nine countries. More than EUR 26.7 million in cash and virtual currencies have been seized in this operation.
With judicial support from Eurojust, authorities in France, Germany, Romania and Switzerland have taken action against an organised crime group which was involved in a considerable number of ransomware attacks across Europe.
