BUCHAREST, November 26th - Three SECI Center member countries, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey and Greece, worked together and coordinated a controlled delivery operation, which led to 44,8 kg of heroin seized and 8 people arrested.The case was initiated by the officers of the Anti-Drug Department of the Ministry of Interior of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Following an investigation on a criminal group, they obtained the information about a transport of drugs from Turkey to Europe, by truck.
The colleagues from Turkey were immediately announced through the SECI Center.
After an exchange of information, the officers from Skopje asked for a controlled delivery operation, coordinated through the Center. The response of the counterparts from Turkey and Greece, as transiting country, was positive.
The transport of drugs was managed by nationals from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia who left the country by truck and traveled to Turkey were they loaded the drugs. All this time the vehicle was under the surveillance of the police forces in the region.
The truck remained 10 days in Turkey. On the 23rd of November the traffickers started their journey back to Skopje.
When the truck moved, the Turkish Police announced their colleagues from Greece who continued the surveillance. During the night, the transport crossed the border in Greece. It was taken over in surveillance by the officers of Hellenic Police.
Finally, after 24 hours of surveillance, the truck arrived in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The local team continued to survey the target. On the way to Skopje, before the truck entered the city, it was stopped by the police.
During the control, in a special made concealment place in the truck, the police officers found 62 packages of heroin, wrapped in brown tape in irregular shapes, with a total gross weigh of 44 kg. and 850 grams. After this, the driver of the truck was deprived of liberty.
In order to establish and prove the involvement of other persons – members of a criminal group responsible for organizing the transport of the heroin, and according to the previously prepared Operational plan, the Anti Drug Unit from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia carried out additional measures - searching houses and other premises. 8 persons were arrested.
During the searches on the territory of Skopje and Kumanovo, in the houses and premises of arrested persons, the police officers found and seized one gun with license, a gun in the pen form, five different types of unlicensed guns, 196 bullets of various caliber, two packages with 5 gr. of heroin, 1.300 euros and several mobile phones and SIM cards.
The investigation will continue to identify all the members of the criminal group.
The SECI Regional Center for Combating Trans-border Crime, headquartered in Bucharest, Romania, was launched in 2000, and is a unique operational organization in which police and customs liaison officers from 13 member states (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey) work together in direct cooperation, coordinate joint investigations and facilitate information exchange.
Besides the member countries, there are 22 observers, countries and organizations: Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, EUBAM, France, Georgia, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Slovakia, Ukraine, UNDP Romania, the United Kingdom, UNMIK, and the United States of America.
Italy and the United States maintain permanent representation at the SECI Center, and Interpol and the World Customs Organization are permanent (non-resident) advisors to the SECI Center.
