Ohrid/ Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, October 20 – 21, 2015 – The Financial and Computer Crime Task Force Regional Meeting organized by SELEC was attended by 30 participants from the competent Law Enforcement agencies from the SELEC Member States and from banks, financial service providers, payment cards service providers, mobile operators and other relevant institutions from the member countries. The participants in the Conference had a multi-disciplinary approach in the exchange of experience and trends in the area of computer crime and digital forensics.
SELEC is a unique operational organization which facilitates the rapid exchange of information between law enforcement agencies from different countries regarding trans-border criminal cases. As a result of this daily practical exchange of information, joint investigations are developed by the Member States targeting organized criminal groups acting in different fields. One such criminal organized group operating in the area of illegal termination of GSM traffic was dismantled through Operation SIMBOX. This case was successful due to close cooperation of the competent Law Enforcement agencies in Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Republic of Serbia, through SELEC channels. The case was awarded by SELEC with the first prize. An awarding ceremony was held during the Task Force meeting, the efforts and professionalism of the units involved in this case being recognized.
Encouraging the Member States to exploit more the advantages SELEC is offering, Mr. Romulus Nicolae Ungureanu, Director for Operations of SELEC, underlined that “organized criminality, including cybercrime and credit card fraud, is a threat to the rule of law and is affecting the citizens’ safety, the economy and security of our countries. The professionalism, commitment and dedication of the Law Enforcement agencies from our Member States in fighting organized criminality represent the most important push up factors for all of us in increasing our efforts to fight, prevent or diminish the effects of the organized crime activity in our region, and not only. As Director for Operations of SELEC is my priority to improve the existing co-operation platform of SELEC and to initiate and establish new tools to be used in the fight against organized crime.”