In the first semester of 2021, the Romanian Border Police continued to pursue the fulfillment of the attributions conferred by the national legislation in force, both in terms of optimizing border surveillance and control, as well as the effective fight against cross-border crime.
At the same time, in order to implement the measures established at national level in order to prevent the spread of the infection with the new coronavirus, the Romanian Border Police aimed to achieve the following objectives:
- streamlining cross-border traffic by supplementing border control staff, making full use of crossing point infrastructure, using mobile control equipment to increase processing capacity, contacting border authorities of neighboring states with which control is carried out jointly to ensure sufficient staff at checkpoints;
- monitoring the implementation of border control measures.
Also, in the conditions of the massive influx of migrants to Western Europe, it was necessary to concentrate efforts to effectively manage the phenomenon at the Romanian borders, meaning that the Border Police was actively involved in implementing systematic control at all checkpoints and increased surveillance of state border.
Traffic of persons and means of transport
The traffic values registered at the border crossing points, in the first half of 2021, were approximately 13 million crossings (6,300,000 on the way in and 6,700,000 on the way out):
- approximately 10.7 million U.E. citizens (of which 8.3 million Romanian citizens).
- approximately 2.3 million non-U.E. citizens.
On border sections, the approximate situation of traffic values for persons, both on the way in and on the way out, is as follows:
|
|
2021 |
|
Hungary |
5.057.000 |
|
Ukraine |
764.000 |
|
Moldavia |
1.871.000 |
|
Bulgaria |
2.305.000 |
|
Serbia |
338.000 |
|
Airports |
2.572.000 |
|
Ports |
88.000 |
|
TOTAL |
12.995.000 |
Compared to the same period in 2020, when the traffic values registered at the Romanian borders were 15,000,000 people, this year there is a decrease of 13%.
Analyzing the situation in this semester, we find that in February there was a minimum of traffic values, both at entry and exit, values that were on an upward trend until June of this year.
Valorile de trafic pentru mijloacele de transport înregistrate în punctele de trecere a frontierei, în perioada analizată, au fost de aproximativ 5.209.000 autovehicule, acestea fiind constante cu perioada similară 2020 (5.164.000 mijloace de transport).
The traffic values for the means of transport registered in the border crossing points, in the analyzed period, were of approximately 5,209,000 vehicles, these being constant with the similar period 2020 (5,164,000 means of transport).
Illegal acts found by R.B.P
În prima jumătate a anului 2021, poliţiştii de frontiera au constatat 8.650 fapte ilegale (5.401 infracţiuni şi 3.249 contravenţii).
In the first half of 2021, border police found 8,650 illegal deeds (5,401 crimes and 3,249 contraventions).
Of the total number of crimes - 5,401 - most were recorded in the areas: crossing / attempted illegal crossing of the border (2,421), trafficking in migrants (461), forgery and use of forgery (594), such as smuggling and customs fraud (382).
Compared to the specifics of each border, most criminal acts were detected at the border with Hungary, their number representing 29% of the number of criminal acts found at the RBP level, followed by the border with Serbia (17%).
At the same time, in the matter of ascertaining and sanctioning the contravention deeds, in the first semester of 2021 contravention fines were applied for 3,249 persons amounting to 2,051,000 lei, most of the contravention sanctions being applied at the border with the Republic of Moldova (32% of the total number).
In the first semester of 2021, 6,854 foreign citizens were not allowed to enter the country due to non-compliance with the legal conditions for entering the country, registering a significant increase of 163% compared to the previous year. One of the main reasons for the measure not to allow entry into the country was that they did not have the necessary documentation to justify the purpose and conditions of stay..
Combating illegal migration
In the first part of 2021, following activities of surveillance and control of the state border, 8,758 foreign citizens were detected in the area of competence who tried to cross the state border illegally, of which 4,867 on the way to enter the country and 3,891 foreigners on their way out of the country. Last year, in the same period, 2,912 foreign citizens were detected acting illegally at the border - 1,491 on the way in and 1,421 on the way out, so this year, there is a 200% increase in the number of people detected.
The most used way of attempting illegal entry / exit in / from Romania was the crossing / attempted illegal crossing of the green border, approximately 60% of migrants (5,013) using this method. Another way used by migrants, especially on the way out of the country, is to hide in means of transport, 3,110 of them using such a method.
As a novelty, this year, there were cases in which migrants resorted to illegal crossings in the river area, using boats.
Also, of the total number of people involved in illegal migration, most were organized into 1,226 migrant groups in which 315 traffickers were identified. Also, 330 people (Romanian citizens and foreign citizens) involved in facilitating activities were found.
As a result of measures taken at the border with Serbia to strengthen the state border surveillance device, action was taken in collaboration with the Serbian border authorities to prevent the illegal crossing of foreign nationals from the neighboring country by closing migrants' travel routes. Thus, in 6 months 2021, 28,737 people were prevented from entering the country.
At the Romanian border, persons from: Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, Morocco, Bangladesh, Algeria, Tunisia or India were detected acting illegally (both on entry and exit).
2,883 people from migrant-producing countries submitted applications for asylum status to border police structures at the time of illegal border crossing / attempted border crossing.
Combating cross-border crime
- On the line of combating trafficking in consumer goods
Illicit trafficking in goods is still in the attention of the border police, and measures are being taken against persons who intend to circumvent the customs law, in order to obtain substantial profits from the sale of goods transported on the specific market:
- 382 crimes of smuggling and customs fraud and 30 crimes of economic-financial nature were found, as a result of which goods worth approximately 79.6 million lei were detained for confiscationau fost constatate;
- 95 persons were detected crossing / attempting to cross the border illegally (not in the subject of illegal migration) on whom goods were discovered that were the object of smuggling or illegal trafficking in goods. Smuggled goods consist of coffee, cigarettes, food, electronics and appliances, clothing, etc.
Illegal cigarette trafficking
În perioada analizată, poliţiştii de frontieră au reţinut în vederea confiscării peste 1.442.500 de pachete cu ţigări în valoare de peste 18,9 milioane de lei, aproximativ 57,5 tone de tutun şi 475 kg tutun pentru narghilea fiind identificate şi destructurate 4 grupuri organizate (conform Legii 39/2003) în vederea săvârşirii infracţiunii de contrabandă cu ţigări în care au fost identificate 44 persoane. Persoanele implicate în traficul ilegal cu ţigări provin din România, R. Moldova, Ucraina, Bulgaria, Ungaria şi Serbia.
During the analyzed period, the border police detained in order to confiscate over 1,442,500 packs of cigarettes worth over 18.9 million lei, approximately 57.5 tons of tobacco and 475 kg of hookah tobacco , 4 organized crime groups(according to Law 39/2003) in order to commit the crime of cigarette smuggling (in which 44 persons were identified) were identified and dismantled. People involved in illegal cigarette trafficking come from Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Hungary and Serbia.
Intellectual property rights infringements
On the line of intellectual property rights, during the analyzed period 168 criminal acts were detected, the border police - independently or in collaboration with the customs workers - found counterfeit goods bearing protected international trademarks, as follows:
- 69.138 clothing and underwear;
- 16.522 pairs of shoes;
- 33.983 cosmetics and perfumery;
- 41.700 toys;
- 1.073 leather goods;
- 405.200 other goods (tools, writing instruments, bath sets, etc.
- On the line of traffic with stolen cars -. In the area of competence of the Border Police 77 vehicles were discovered which were reported stolen in various countries of the European Union (67 cars, 7 minibuses, 2 trucks and a trailer). The persons involved in this illicit activity are Romanian, Bulgarian, Spanish, Turkish, Ukrainian, Moldovan and Hungarian citizens.
- On the line of illegal trafficking in weapons and ammunition
During the reference period, 2,861 weapons were discovered (2,852 cartridge pistols, two military pistols, one compressed air pistol, three compressed air guns and two rifles), 50,736 cartridges and 10 weapon components.
The perpetrators of crimes under the arms and ammunition regimen come from Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Moldova, Romania, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine, Finland and Portugal.
- On the line of combating illegal fishing -
520 crimes were found and 700 contraventions were applied, amounting to over 234,000 lei, 39 boats, 21 boat engines, 7,793 m monofilament nets, 16,702 m textile and nylon nets, 4,251 kg of fish, of which 178 kg sturgeon and 15 kg of fish eggs.
- Illegal waste transport
At the level of the Romanian Border Police, actions were taken in collaboration with the representatives of the Environmental Guard in order to prevent the introduction of waste transports in the country, which did not meet the conditions provided by law, proceeding to check and control means of transport as well and to monitor the area of competence.
In the first semester of 2021, either in specific interventions or in large-scale actions, carried out in collaboration with the National Environmental Guard and the General Directorate of Customs, significant quantities of waste were stopped at the entry into the country, respectively 106 transports with over 4,600 tons of waste, consisting of: brass, chipboard, aluminum, rubber, used appliances, used clothing, cardboard, plastics, glass, paper, batteries, car components, furniture, metals, etc.
In the next period, the Romanian Border Police will continue to take firm measures in all areas of competence in order to detect and detain persons who commit illegal acts, the aim being to ensure national security and citizens.
SIGNIFICANT CASES
On the line of illegal migration
- 50 migrants, hidden in the refrigerated trailer of a truck
Border guards at the Nadlac Border Crossing Point found 50 Afro-Asian citizens trying to cross the state border illegally, hidden in the refrigerated trailer of a truck carrying horse bones in Italy.
On 30.06.2021, around 05.00, at the Nădlac Border Crossing Point, a Romanian citizen who was driving a road assembly consisting of a tractor and a refrigerated semi-trailer showed up to carry out the border formalities, on the way out of the country, both registered in Romania. The driver was transporting horse bones for a company in Italy, according to the documents accompanying the goods. The people were picked up and transported to the sector headquarters for further research.
- Thirty foreign citizens who crossed the Danube with an inflatable boat, detected by the border police
On 09.04.2021, a border police patrol from the Gârla Mare Border Police Sector discovered a group of 30 people from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq on the banks of the Danube River. Investigations revealed that migrants fraudulently crossed the border from Serbia to Romania during the night with the help of an inflatable motor boat.
The border policemen extended the checks, under the coordination of the prosecutor from the Prosecutor's Office attached to the Vanju Mare Court, to detect all the persons involved and to establish the entire criminal area, at the end of which the necessary legal measures will be ordered.
On the line of combating illegal cigarette trafficking
- Criminal group specialized in illegal cigarette trafficking, destructured
On 27.05.2021, the border guards from the GIBP. - Directorate for the Prevention and Combating of Illegal Migration and Cross-Border Crime (including the territorial structures of Timișoara, Otopeni and the Coast Guard), under the coordination of prosecutors of the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism - Central Structure, together with GIP - The Directorate for Combating Organized Crime, with the support of workers from the General Directorate of Customs - The Directorate for Supervision of Customs Operations and the Dolj Regional Customs Directorate carried out a number of 14 home searches in Dolj and Olt counties, in a case aimed at dismantling a organized criminal group of 19 persons, specializing in the smuggling offenses, the production of excisable products covered by the warehousing procedure, other than a tax warehouse authorized by the competent authority, counterfeiting of a trade mark and the placing on the market of a product bearing an identical or similar trademark to a registered trademark for identical or similar products, unfair competition and money laundering.
Following the searches, approximately 50 tons of loose tobacco, a line of shredded, fermented, crushed and dried tobacco, a printing press, materials and raw materials used in the production, assembly and packaging of cigarettes, respectively sheets, filter were seized, foil, adhesive, blankets, with similar designs applied to well-known brands of cigarettes. Also, 2 car assemblies consisting of a tractor head and a semi-trailer, a van (which would have been used to transport tobacco and the materials needed to process it), 5 vehicles and a generator, which would have been used to avoid consumption of large amount of electricity from suppliers (so as not to detect illegal activity), were confiscated.
The investigations are carried out under the coordination of the D.I.I.C.O.T. - Central structure.
- Approximately 150,000 packs of cigarettes, found hidden in metal boxes in a truck, at P.T.F. Giurgiu
On 31.05.2021, the border police officers from the Giurgiu Border Crossing Point discovered and confiscated 149,990 packs of cigarettes, which were hidden in a road complex, in metal boxes hidden in gypsum pallets. The driver of the truck was detained for 24 hours and is being investigated for the crime of smuggling.
The Giurgiu border police officers confiscated the entire quantity of cigarettes, worth 2,999,800 lei, as well as the 15 pallets with gypsum transported by the driver, in order to continue the investigations.
A detention order was issued on behalf of the Romanian citizen for 24 hours, and in this case the border police are conducting investigations under the aspect of committing the crime of "smuggling", under the coordination of the case prosecutor from the Prosecutor's Office attached to Giurgiu Court.
- Container with undeclared cigarettes, discovered in the Port of Constanţa
On 16.04.2021, based on the risk analysis, the border guards from the Coast Guard, together with the workers of the Constanţa Sud Border Customs Office and of the Service for Combating Organized Crime - Maritime Ports, carried out a physical check on a container arrived from Russia destined for Moldova. Following the checks, 246,000 packs of cigarettes were discovered, and a customs declaration was presented for only 4,920 packs. The 241,080 packs of cigarettes for which no documents accompanying the goods could be presented were seized for investigation, and the criminal case was drawn up under the aspect of committing the crime of using unreal acts at the customs authority.
Intellectual property rights infringements
- Goods liable to be counterfeited for one million euros, confiscated by the border guards of the Coast Guard
On 12.06.2021, the border guards from the Coast Guard together with the customs workers from the General Directorate of Customs discovered, in a car dealer arriving from Turkey, approximately 13,000 clothing items, inscribed with the names of well-known brands, likely to be counterfeit.
The products, worth about one million euros if they had been marketed as branded goods, were seized for further investigation, and the border guards are investigating the commission of the crime of putting a branded product on the market. identical or similar to a registered trademark, at the end of which the required legal measures will be taken.
On the line of stolen car traffic
- Off-road car, with a market value of over 1,300,000 lei, found in the Port of Constanța
On 21.05.2021, the border guards from the Coast Guard, while exercising their duties in the Port of Constanța Sud Agigea, participated together with the customs officers from the Border Customs Office Constanţa Sud Agigea in a physical control over a container of personal goods, arrived from the USA, which was addressed to a Romanian citizen.
Thus, among the personal belongings was discovered a Lamborghini Urus SUV with a declared value in documents, of over 400,000 lei.
The car, with a market value on the profile market at over 1,300,000 lei, was made unavailable at the Coast Guard headquarters for further research.
In this case, the border police officers are conducting investigations, under the coordination of the prosecutor from the Prosecutor's Office attached to the Constanța Court, under the aspect of committing the crime of money laundering, and the necessary legal measures will be ordered upon completion.
- Luxury car wanted by the German authorities, worth over 160,000 euros, discovered in Brăila
On May 16 this year, around 12.00, the border policemen from the Brăila Border Crossing Point discovered and detained for the continuation of the investigations a car, Ferrari California brand, worth 788,000 lei, which appeared in the databases as being reported stolen from Germany, an alert introduced just the day before.
Regarding the issues found, the man stated that the car is purchased under lease and is not aware that it was wanted by the authorities.
The border police officers are carrying out investigations in question for committing the crime of concealment, and the car, worth 788,000 lei, was confiscated in order to continue the investigations.
On the line of non-compliance with the weapons and ammunition regime
Over 2,800 pistols, detected in BCP Isaccea
On 24.05.2021, around 23.00, the border police and customs workers from the Isaccea Border Crossing Point found, hidden in a truck, driven by a Ukrainian citizen, 2,850 pistols for which the driver did not have legal authorizations transport.
In the case, the border policemen carry out investigations together with policemen from the Weapons, Ammunition and Explosives Service of the Tulcea County Police Inspectorate under the coordination of the prosecutor from the Prosecutor's Office attached to the Tulcea Tribunal, under the aspect of committing crimes of qualified smuggling and non-compliance with the arms and ammunition regime.
- Lethal ammunition, without documents provided by law, discovered at the eastern border
The border police officers from the Albita Border Crossing Point are investigating a man with dual citizenship, who intended to arrive in the Republic of Moldova with a transport of 49,900 lethal cartridges, without having all the documents required by law, necessary for the transport. The entire amount of ammunition was collected in order to continue and complete the research. In this case, the border guards are conducting investigations into the offenses of non-compliance with the arms and ammunition regime and qualified smuggling.
