Operational support to drug trafficking cases

Drug trafficking was one of the top two crime types dealt with by the Agency in 2022. Eurojust handled more than 2 000 cases, including 1 054 ongoing cases from the previous year, in addition to 1 061 new cases.

This all-time high is partly due to a particularly steep increase in cocaine and synthetic drug cases opened at the Agency in 2022.

Eurojust facilitated the seizure of drugs worth almost EUR 12 billion in 2022, including more than 800 000 kg of synthetic drugs and more than 120 000 kg of cocaine.

During 2022, the Agency provided significant judicial assistance to national authorities on several high-profile cases against organised crime groups dealing in drug trafficking across different continents.

Compared to 2021, there was an increase in the number of JITs, coordination meetings and action days facilitated by Eurojust to tackle cross-border drug trafficking cases in 2022.

45 arrests in crackdown on Albanian-speaking criminals flooding Europe with cocaine

Crime: The suspects import cocaine from Latin America to various European ports, organising transport via planes, vessels, cars and lorries. The high-level criminal network runs the wholesale trade of the drugs and sets up a string of enterprises to launder the profits in various countries, including Spain and Croatia. Its members travel regularly to Dubai, Mexico and Colombia to arrange their illegal business and use encrypted communication tools to coordinate activities.

Action: During an action day supported by Eurojust and Europol, over 600 law enforcement officers in close cooperation with prosecutors and investigative officers carry out raids against the members of the criminal network. Over 80 places are searched in Spain and Belgium, and 45 suspects are arrested. These include a number of high-value targets, investigated in multiple high-profile cases in different jurisdictions. Parallel actions also take place in Croatia, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.

Result: As a result of the international operation involving judicial and law enforcement authorities in seven countries, one of Europe's most active Albanian-speaking cocaine trafficking networks is dismantled.

Eurojust's Role: The Agency sets up a coordination centre to enable rapid cooperation between the judicial authorities involved in the action day. Eurojust and Europol support a JIT set up between Belgium and Spain in 2021.

Drug trafficking cases involving third countries

In 2022, the Agency handled a number of large-scale investigations involving third countries, with the valuable support of the concerned Liaison Prosecutors from these countries posted at Eurojust.

As cross-border investigations become ever more complex and demanding from the judicial cooperation perspective, Eurojust’s support in such drug trafficking cases proved to be vital for the success of coordinated operations across Europe and beyond.

Investigations in cross-border drug trafficking cases benefit significantly from the presence of Liaison Prosecutors from third countries, posted at Eurojust. This is confirmed by the growing number of cases, coordination meetings and JITs involving third countries, facilitated by the Agency. Judicial cooperation with these countries is particularly important in Eurojust’s drug trafficking casework, as illustrated by the case illustrations in this section.

Due to the growing importance of Latin America as a region of origin in a high number of drug trafficking cases, increased cooperation with these countries is paramount to enabling judicial practitioners to better coordinate prosecution strategies. In October 2022, Eurojust attended a meeting of the Bi-regional Operational Working Group on Drugs in Buenos Aires, organised by the Europe Latin America Programme of Assistance against Transnational Organised Crime (EL PAcCTO) and the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre (Narcotics). This marked an important step towards closer judicial cooperation with South American countries and networks in the future. Such cooperation, including supporting the setting up of more JITs, is essential to the success of investigations related to the dismantling of criminal organisations dedicated to drug trafficking.

Serbian-led drug smuggling network halted in Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands

Crime: The OCG traffics cocaine from South America via the Netherlands and Belgium to Germany and the United Kingdom. To conceal this criminal activity, the OCG replaces concrete panels legally acquired in Luxembourg with similar self-produced versions, in which they hide the cocaine.

Action: An action day, coordinated by Eurojust and supported by Europol, is carried out on 26 November. Seven members of the Serbian-led drug trafficking network are arrested simultaneously in four countries. Four suspects are arrested in the Belgian town of Arlon where the hiding of the drugs took place. The three other members of the OCG are arrested in Serbia, Luxembourg and the Netherlands on the same day.

Result: 22 concrete panels are seized, each containing several packages of drugs, amounting to approximately 115 kilograms of cocaine.

Eurojust's Role: Eurojust organises several coordination meetings to prepare for the action day. The Agency provides judicial assistance to the national authorities involved and coordinates the operation.

Eurojust’s contribution to fighting drug trafficking at EU level

During 2022, Eurojust continued to contribute to the implementation of the EU Drugs Action Plan for 2021–2025. The Agency carried out its casework in this area in line with the actions set out in the Council Roadmap to combat drug trafficking, adopted in June 2022.

Throughout 2022, Eurojust also actively contributed to the two drug-related Operational Action Plans of the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT), by representing the judicial cooperation perspective in a significant number of Operational Actions.

Furthermore, the Agency continued its strong cooperation with Europol, the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Training (CEPOL) and the Council of Europe, to ensure effective alignment and greater impact in this area.