The 10-day (26 January – 4 February) Operation Adwenpa saw
more than 100 officers deployed to 10 air and land border control points across
five countries ‒ Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria and Togo – to conduct
additional security checks against INTERPOL’s databases.
Two men who were the subject of INTERPOL Red
Notices were identified – a Ghanaian national wanted by Brazil for drug
trafficking was taken into custody at the Ghana/Cote d’Ivoire border, and a
French national wanted for fraud and embezzlement by Benin was arrested at
Abidjan’s Félix-Houphouët-Boigny International Airport.
A Ghanaian man attempting to smuggle two
migrants into Togo using counterfeit travel documents was arrested, and at the
Nigeria/Benin border six child victims aged between 13 and 17 who were
suspected of being trafficked for labour exploitation were handed into the care
of national authorities.
Nearly 900 kg of narcotics were seized including
cocaine, cannabis, methamphetamine and khat. Searches against INTERPOL’s
database of stolen motor vehicles led to the recovery of seven vehicles which
had been stolen in Canada, France, Germany and Italy.
Smuggled bulk cash, gold ingots and jewellery
worth more than USD 1million were also seized, as well as nearly 80 kg of
trafficked ivory and a number of counterfeit passports.
Director General of Benin National Police Didier
Atchou said the operation clearly showed the links between different types of
crime and the need for a coordinated transnational response.
"With the increased
freedom of movement of goods and people also comes increased opportunities for
criminals," said Director General Atchou.
"The results from
Operation Adwenpa demonstrate what can be achieved when officers on the ground
have the training and access to policing capabilities they need, such as those
provided by INTERPOL",
"Police in the
involved countries have gained new knowledge in combating people smuggling,
drug trafficking, terrorism and other transnational crimes which will
significantly enhance national and regional security in the future,"
concluded the Director General.
Operation Adwenpa marks the final activity of
the two-year Capacity Building Programme to Strengthen Border Management in
West Africa, supported by the Government of Canada’s Anti-Crime Capacity
Building Programme.
"What makes
Operation Adwenpa especially effective is that local officers involved in the
operation took part in an INTERPOL Train-the-Trainer course beforehand,"
said Julia Viedma, INTERPOL’s Director of Capacity Building and
Training.
"These officers
were given the skillsets and tools to train their own colleagues, meaning
police across West Africa will also benefit from this programme in the
future."
"Operation Adwenpa
clearly shows the range of activities in which organized crime is involved, and
law enforcement cannot look at different crime types in isolation," said
Michael O’Connell INTERPOL’s Director of Operational Support and
Analysis.
"This exercise also
demonstrates the importance of using INTERPOL’s global policing capabilities,
to share information and cooperate across borders."
Over the course of the programme, more than 50
officers from National Central Bureaus (NCBs), immigration, customs and other
law enforcement units underwent specialized training. A practical handbook
specifically designed for West African border officers, providing tips,
guidelines and advice in detecting the most predominant forms of transnational
crime affecting the region has also been produced.
