Estonian police participate in large-scale anti-human trafficking operation

TALLINN - In early June, the international anti-human trafficking operation took place, in which many countries from Europe, as well as Asia, Africa and Latin America took part -- from Estonia, the Police and Border Guard Board, the Labor Inspectorate, the Tax and Customs Board and the Social Insurance Board's victim support workers participated.

In total, approximately 50 people in Estonia contributed to the operation.

The operation, codenamed "Global Chain", took place from June 1 to 6 and was led by law enforcement in Austria and Romania, with coordination and support from Europol, Frontex and Interpol. The operation engaged nearly 15 000 officers from 43 different countries and focused on trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, forced criminality and forced begging, with a special focus on underage victims.

This was a large-scale and thoroughly prepared cooperative operation, the aim of which was to identify areas and cases with risk of human trafficking.

"In Estonia, we checked 355 people and 50 companies. We did not detect any cases of human trafficking during that week, but we did open two criminal proceedings on suspicion of human trafficking. In addition, several other violations were revealed -- primarily in terms of occupational safety and the registration of employees," Margo Kivila, head of the North Prefecture's organized crime group, said.

A significant part of the operation focused on prior preparation.

"At a meeting of agencies held in mid-May, we mapped out risky companies and individuals regarding whom there may be indications of labor exploitation. We focused in particular on sectors where foreign labor is used -- such as construction, industry, and agriculture -- where we checked working and living conditions and possible coercion to work under unusual conditions," Kivila said.

According to him, preventing human trafficking does not happen through campaigns or individual cases, but through consistent, daily work.

"The criminal trends of Europe also affect Estonia. What happens in Poland or Germany today may reach us tomorrow. This is why cooperation at both the national and international levels is vital. We cannot just look at our own country's numbers, but must constantly monitor trends and strengthen ties with colleagues from other countries," he said.

Based on reports from countries participating in the operation, the largest number of victims and suspects came from Romania.

"Only in March, a court in Estonia convicted two Romanian citizens who had trafficked their compatriots. This clearly shows that we are directly affected by the same criminal patterns that are spreading across Europe," Kivila said.

Several countries also highlighted the criminal activities of Nigerian networks, where human trafficking-related activities are organized through seemingly legitimate companies.

The major operation against human trafficking resulted in the safeguarding of 1,194 potential victims and the arrest of 158 suspects. As part of ongoing investigations, an additional 205 human trafficking suspects have also been identified.