Category: Eurojust

Source: Eurojust

The dark web marketplace was active for over five years. Archetyp was one of the only platforms to allow the sale of fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. The marketplace had around 17 000 listings online, and with more than 600 000 users, it is considered one of the largest of its kind.

Investigations into Archetyp revealed that its creator and current administrator is a German national residing in Spain. International cooperation between authorities, financial tracking and digital evidence analysis led to the identification of the people behind Archetyp. Investigators discovered the location of the servers, moderators and vendors on the marketplace. A coordinated action week was planned to dismantle Archetyp and arrest those responsible for selling and operating the platform, under the coordination of Eurojust and Europol.

The action week took place between 11 and 13 June, targeting the platform’s administrator, moderators, key vendors and the servers running the website. Coordinated actions in five countries, carried out by around 300 officers, resulted in the arrest of the thirty year old administrator in Spain, seven other persons and the seizure of assets worth EUR 7.8 million. By taking Archetyp offline, authorities have dealt a severe blow to drug traffickers in Europe.

Eurojust ensured the international investigation was efficient and effective. The Agency organised multiple coordination meetings, which enabled authorities to exchange critical information for the investigation. During the action days and the preliminary investigations, Eurojust coordinated the execution of mutual legal assistance and European Investigation Orders.

Europol supported the investigation from the outset, facilitating the exchange of intelligence, conducting extensive cross-checks and helping to identify high-value targets. On the action days, Europol deployed a dark web specialist to Germany and set up a virtual command post to coordinate field activities and ensure real-time deconfliction across jurisdictions.

The following authorities, with the support of the United States, carried out the operation:

• Germany: Prosecutor General’s Office Frankfurt am Main – Cyber Crime Center; Federal Criminal Police Office
• Netherlands: Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rotterdam; National Police, Unit Police Unit Rotterdam
• Spain: Investigative Court num 10 in Barcelona; International Cooperation Section of PPO Barcelona; National Police
• Sweden: Swedish Prosecution Authority; National Public Prosecution Department, National Unit against Organised Crime in Gothenburg; Swedish National Police; National Operations Department / Swedish Cybercrime Unit
• Romania: Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT); National Police

Source: Eurojust

The organised crime group (OCG), which has now been dismantled, targeted victims across the European Union from professionally organised call centres in Moldova. The network consisted of Romanian, Moldovan, Ukrainian and Italian suspects who managed to secure the personal data of victims. With this data, they managed to obtain banking details of the victims, allowing them to make payments into accounts belonging to the network. In total, thirty victims have been identified, with the financial losses amounting to a total of EUR 20 million.

Today’s actions in Romania and Moldova focused on a specific group within the OCG, which was responsible for opening various bank accounts, often using false Romanian identity documents, to hide the criminal proceeds. Via a network of myriad accounts and various financial platforms, the money was further transferred to render investigations into the proceeds more difficult. In addition, the money was converted into cryptocurrencies and traded between various electronic wallets.

The criminal activities of the network have been ongoing since at least 2013. Detailed investigations into the criminal group were initiated in November 2022 by the Moldovan Prosecutor’s Office for Combatting Organised Crime and Special Cases.

Eurojust assisted with the setting up of the JIT in March 2025 and also supported the authorities in Romania and Moldova with the execution of requests for European Investigation Orders. Moldova is one of the twelve countries that have a Liaison Prosecutor^* at Eurojust.

The operations in this case were carried out at the request of and by the following authorities:

• Romania: Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT), Galati Regional Structure
• Moldova: Prosecutor’s Office for Combatting Organised Crime and Special Cases (PCCOCS)

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* The other countries are: Albania, Georgia, Iceland, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Source: Eurojust

Source: Eurojust

The Italian authorities were investigating a criminal group based in southern Sardinia, composed of eight individuals who were importing large quantities of cocaine from the Netherlands. The drugs were loaded into vehicles with hidden compartments at the bottom. After hiding the cocaine, the vehicles were driven to Italy, where the drugs were sold to local traffickers in Sardinia. During the investigation, over 20 kilograms of pure cocaine were seized, and three couriers were arrested.

The cooperation with the Netherlands has started four years ago on the basis of mutual legal assistance on both police and judicial level. It culminated in an action day on 11 June, which took place simultaneously in Italy and the Netherlands. During the action day, two suspects were arrested in Italy and one in the Netherlands. In Italy, EUR 3 million and 90 properties were seized, along with bank accounts and vehicles. In the Netherlands parts of the EUR 600 000 profits of the Dutch suspect were seized.

Eurojust coordinated the international cooperation in the cross-border investigation, ensuring that four European Investigation Orders were executed to gather information and continue the investigation into the criminal network. The Agency supported the action day on 11 June by preparing the European Arrest Warrant executed in the Netherlands.

The following authorities carried out the operation:

• Italy: Cagliari Public Prosecutor’s Office – Anti-Mafia District Directorate; Guardia di Finanza di Cagliari – GICO (Organised Crime Investigation Unit – Anti-Drug Section)
• Netherlands: Public Prosecutor’s Office Zeeland-West-Brabant; Centre for International Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Zeeland-West-Brabant; Police Zeeland-West-Brabant

Source: Eurojust

The criminal group targeted individuals from disadvantaged communities in Romania. The perpetrators approached their victims on social media, luring them with false romantic promises or offers for them to perform sex work abroad under favourable conditions. Once the victims accepted these offers, they were taken abroad to provide sexual services on escort websites and in rented flats. They were kept under constant surveillance by the criminal group and subjected to appalling conditions, working long hours in degrading and unsafe circumstances. The victims were expected to work continuously, regardless of their mental or physical state. Even visibly pregnant women were forced to work without rest.

Investigations into the group uncovered a large-scale network that had been operating across Europe for over seven years. In 2022, its members moved to Switzerland to continue their activities in several Swiss German-speaking cities, particularly Zurich. The suspected leader of the group started to recruit new members, setting up his own criminal school, where he taught techniques enslaving and exploiting victims. In some cases, victims were traded between members in exchange for money or used as stakes in gambling.

A joint action day to dismantle the criminal group took place on 3 June. Authorities arrested 13 suspects in Romania and four in Switzerland. The alleged victims were brought to safety and given support from a counselling service specialising in human trafficking. In addition to targeting the members in Switzerland, the investigations also focused on individuals in Romania who provided logistical support and laundered the proceeds from the criminal activities.

The successful operation was made possible through close cooperation between Romanian and Swiss authorities under the coordination of Eurojust and Europol. A joint investigation team, set up and funded by Eurojust, ensured the authorities could work together quickly and efficiently. Europol supported the national authorities throughout the investigation by facilitating the exchange of critical intelligence and providing expert analytical support, including the preparation of link charts on the organised crime group. On the action day, Europol provided remote assistance to investigators by cross-checking operational data in real time.

The following authorities carried out the operation:

• Romania: Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice – Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism, Bacau Territorial Service; Police Brigade for Combating Organised Crime Iași, Police Service for Combating Organised Crime Neamț; Neamț and Bacău County Gendarmerie Inspectorates; Mobile Gendarmerie Unit Bacău.
• Switzerland: Public Prosecutor’s Office of the canton of Zurich; Zurich City Police

Source: Eurojust

This design shows a more modern, dynamic and cohesive look, in line with current branding and communication standards. The new logo is a combination of symbols, bringing together multiple concepts essential to the Network (hover over any of the specific aspects to see a detailed graphic display of this feature of the logo):

Together, these elements are a visual reaffirmation of the identity, purpose and values that unite all members of the Network. 

The transition to the short name Genocide Prosecution Network accompanies the visual renewal, underscoring its clear focus on providing support to investigations and prosecutions of core international crimes.

This change does not alter the official name, remaining the European network of contact points with respect to persons responsible for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, based on the Council Decision of 13 June 2002 (2002/494/JHA).

Source: Eurojust

Source: Eurojust

This week’s actions follow the largest ever operation against botnets from May 2024, Operation Endgame. This year during Endgame 2.0, the measures targeted the successor groups of malware taken down by the authorities and other relevant variants: Bumblebee, Lactrodectus, Qakbot, DanaBot, HijackLoader, Trickbot, and WarmCookie. As these variants are at the beginning of the cyberattack chain, disrupting them damages the entire ‘cybercrime as a service’ ecosystem. 

The malware taken down this week is known as ‘initial access malware’. It is used for initial infection, helping cybercriminals to enter victims’ systems unnoticed and load more malware onto their devices, such as ransomware. 

Due to the global nature of cybercrime, cross-border investigations are key for taking action against disruptive cybercrimes. Since 2024, Eurojust has provided essential support to ensure effective judicial cooperation. Coordination by Eurojust ensured that authorities could exchange information and align their investigative efforts. Europol supported the operation from the outset, providing coordination, operational and analytical support, cryptocurrency tracing, and facilitating the real-time exchange of information between the various partners involved.

German, French, Dutch, Danish, British, American and Canadian authorities joined forces from 19 to 22 May to take action against the world’s most dangerous malware variants and the perpetrators behind them. In total 37 suspects were identified and international arrest warrants were obtained against 20 individuals criminally charged. Over 300 servers worldwide were taken down and 650 domains were neutralised. During the action week, EUR 3.5 million in cryptocurrency was seized making the total cryptocurrency seized during Endgame EUR 21.2 million. 

Operation EndGame will now continue with follow up actions announced on the dedicated website from the international coalition. Several key suspects behind the malware operations are now subject to international and public appeals. The German authorities will publish eighteen of them on the EU Most Wanted list as of 23 May.

The following authorities carried out the operation:

• Germany: German Federal Criminal Police Office; Public Prosecutor; General’s Office Frankfurt am Main – Cybercrime Office; German Federal Office for Information Security
• France: PPO Paris section J3 (Cybercrime Unit); BL2C (Cybercrime unit Préfecture de Police); OFAC (National Office against Cybercriminality)
• Netherlands: Netherlands Public Prosecution Service (National Office); Netherlands Police
• Denmark: National Special Crime Unit – NSK; NC3 | High Tech Crime
• United Kingdom: National Crime Agency
• United States: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); U.S Department of Justice’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section; U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California
• Canada: Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)

Source: Eurojust

Source: Eurojust

International judicial authorities are increasingly confronted with challenges such as sanctions, funding limitations, and lack of cooperation. These obstacles risk disrupting ongoing investigations and proceedings, ultimately undermining justice for the victims of some of the most heinous crimes.

The opening remarks provided by Eurojust, the Polish Ministry of Justice and the European Commission, underscored the significance of international judicial institutions, including the International Criminal Court (ICC), in ensuring justice for core international crimes.

Mr Michael Schmid, Eurojust President: Delivering justice for core international crimes is not optional. It is essential for security, stability and the rule of law. The EU Day Against Impunity reminds us that accountability cannot wait and that the EU will not look the other way. Together with independent international justice systems, we will be a force for accountability and make global justice part of who we are.

Mr Adam Bodnar, Minister of Justice of Poland: Our unified European support for international accountability for war crimes is more important than ever. But we should not forget that independence of judicial authorities is one part of the story. The other is what we do in order to document war crimes and for this I’m grateful for Eurojust’s support and the work of authorities in other EU Member States.

Mr Michael McGrath, European Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law and Consumer Protection: The independence and impartiality of international judicial bodies are not negotiable. These institutions do not serve geopolitical interests; they serve the law; and the law serves the people it is enacted to protect.

The event also featured a keynote address from Mr Frank Hoffmeister, Head of the Legal Department of the European External Action Service, as well as a panel discussion featuring representatives from the ICC, Council of Europe, civil society, and EU Member States. The panellists examined how these challenges undermine the effective delivery of justice and restrict victims’ access to it. They emphasised the urgent need for strong collaboration among states, international organisations, and civil society to safeguard the integrity and impartiality of judicial bodies in an increasingly complex landscape.

Since 2016, Eurojust has joined the Genocide Prosecution Network, European Commission and Presidency of the Council of the EU to host an event on or around 23 May to raise awareness of the most heinous crimes and promote national investigations and prosecutions. In previous editions, they have discussed topics such as the cumulative prosecution of foreign terrorist fighters, accountability for core international crimes committed in Syria, and the commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.

These annual events highlight the efforts and commitment of EU Member States in enforcing international criminal law with the support of the EU. To see an overview of all previous editions, visit our website.