INTERPOL Support to EL PACCTO 2.0

Timeframe: January 2024 to December 2026

Funded by: European Union (Directorate-General for International Partnerships - DG INTPA)

The situation

Organized crime rates in Latin America and the Caribbean continue to be among the highest in the world and have increased following the global pandemic. Transnational organized criminal groups operating in the region demonstrate a high level of sophistication, engaging in a wide range of activities that threaten security, human rights and good governance.

The movement of international fugitives evading the rule of law and justice in the region strains not only good governance but also trust in law enforcement and public safety.

In 2017, the European Union (EU) launched phase 1 of its El PACCTO programme (Europe - Latin America Programme of Assistance against Transnational Organized Crime to promote security and Justice in Latin America. In 2024, it launched phase 2 to further enhance cooperation between Latin America and the Caribbean, and Europe.

In this context, the INTERPOL support to EL PACCTO 2.0 Project which focuses on building cooperation amongst participating member countries to improve fugitive investigations was launched at the start of 2024.

Objectives

The project aims to achieve the following:

• Improved efficiency and effectiveness of cooperation to pursue and locate and arrest high value fugitives in 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), including those with links to Europe.
• Long term ability for law enforcement to conduct joint fugitive investigations through increased interregional police cooperation and standardized information exchange between law enforcement officers in the region.
• Enhanced bestpractice working methods in fugitive investigations in the region.

Project activities

Specialized operational and investigative support, as well as capacity building activities, will focus on identifying the most dangerous fugitives, their associated networks and the groups responsible for providing them with support and logistics.

Project activities are intelligence-led and tailored to all 12 participating countries’ operational needs. Four European countries are providing assistance (France, Italy, Portugal and Spain). Intelligence-led operations will be conducted in the region with a focus on subjects of our Red Notices.

Strengthening the network of fugitive investigators

INTERPOL created a Regional Fugitive Investigative Network (REFINE) during the first phase of the Project and through the several Infra operations performed in the regions. Project 2.0 will build upon this network and bring together law enforcement officers through operational meetings to share experience on fugitives’ identification, localization, tracking and arrest.

Operations and Police data exchange

INTERPOL will leverage our established INFRA (International Fugitive Round-Up and Arrest) operating model to strengthen police capacity to identify, track and arrest fugitives and promote joint operations at the multi-country level.

Our Fugitive Investigation Support (FIS) unit has developed a mechanism for law enforcement to standardize, analyze and exchange police data via INTERPOL's I-24/7 police communication system. The aim is to anticipate and identify the movements, travel facilitators and modus operandi of fugitives to facilitate their location and arrest by national law enforcement.

Strengthening investigative techniques

Operational workshops will be organized to build the law enforcement capacity of the four new countries participating in the Project (Belize, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, and Jamaica). The workshops will focus on specialized fugitive investigation techniques and INTERPOL capabilities for criminal investigations (INTERPOL tools, data exchanges, forensics, cybercrime and criminal intelligence analysis).

Project Updates

Kick-Off Meeting

The INTERPOL support to EL PACCTO 2.0 kick-off meeting was held online on 12 June 2024. The meeting brought together fugitive investigators from the 12 Latin America and Caribbean Project participating countries, and 4 European countries. The objectives of the meeting were to update the INTERPOL REFINE (Regional Fugitives Investigators Network) created during the Project phase 1 (2017-2022) in the Region, and introduce the activities INTERPOL will be implementing during the second phase of the Project.

The Project kick-off meeting has been pivotal to trigger the operational discussions and inform the INTERPOL network on all the series of activities that INTERPOL will be delivering throughout the upcoming 36 months.

First Operational Meeting

The First Project Operational Meeting took place in Fortaleza, Brazil, from 6 to 8 August 2024. The event aimed to strengthen the interregional network of fugitive investigators (REFINE), showcase examples of fruitful cases, and lay the groundwork for future operational actions.
During the meeting, representatives from the 12 Project participating countries and 3 European countries engaged in numerous bilateral meetings, exchanging vital intelligence on fugitives' whereabouts and fostering closer connections and trust.
As a result, a significant number of high-risk fugitives under INTERPOL Red Notice were identified, paving the way for their potential location and arrest.

National Workshop for Jamaica

The National Workshop for Jamaica took place in Kingston, on 23-24 October 2024. The two-day workshop aimed to introduce INTERPOL’s capabilities to Jamaican law enforcement national authorities, enhance multi-agency cooperation and pave the way for the interregional Fugitives Operation to take place in Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe under the umbrella of the INTERPOL support to EL PACCTO 2.0 Project. This pre-operational workshop brought together 28 participants from 12 national law enforcement agencies, highlighting the importance of strengthening multi-agency cooperation to better address fugitives’ investigations, with the ultimate objective of bringing criminals to justice. Jamaica was the first, out of the four new Project participating countries (Project phase 2: Belize, Dominican Republic, Jamaica and El Salvador) to benefit from this workshop.

First Fugitives Task Force Operation

After six months of operational cooperation, a four-day meeting of the EL PACCTO 2.0 Task Force was held in November 2024 in Argentina. It was the first INTERPOL Task Force operation conducted under the second phase of the Project, targeting many of the most dangerous fugitives in Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe, which led to the arrest of 58 high-risk criminals and the location of 28 more. Working from a list of more than 150 cases regarding individuals wanted for violent and organized crime charges, the international task force shared information and followed up on investigative leads between July and December 2024. The Fugitive Operation brought together investigators from 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as four countries in Europe. Among the 58 arrests, 15 of those were wanted for murder, while 14 were accused of drug trafficking and 18 of crimes against children.