INTERPOL coordinated the operational activity of 16 airlines and
police in nine countries located at 12 airports in the Asia-Pacific and
Middle East regions.
Police
at the scene where shots were fired during a police search of a house in
the suburb of Forest near Brussels, Belgium, March 15, 2016.
The International Police
Organisation, INTERPOL said on Tuesday that 140 individuals had been
nabbed globally for using fake and stolen credit cards to purchase
airplane tickets.
It said that an international
law enforcement operation targeting the purchase of airplane tickets
using stolen or fake payment card details had resulted in the detention
of the 140 individuals.
The INTERPOL said in a
statement that a two-day Airport Action Days operation was jointly
coordinated by INTERPOL, Europol and Ameripol, with support from law
enforcement authorities in Canada and the U.S.
INTERPOL
said it coordinated the operational activities across the Asia-Pacific
and Middle East regions from its command post located at the INTERPOL
Global Complex for Innovation (IGCI) in Singapore.
``Staffed
by officers from the Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes and Global
Outreach and Regional Support units, as well as the Command and
Coordination Centre.
``Other command posts were
set up by Europol in the Netherlands, Ameripol in Colombia and by
Canadian and American law enforcement authorities, and support was also
offered by Frontex and Eurojust.
``During the
operation, 252 suspicious transactions were reported worldwide, which
led to 140 individuals being detained, denied boarding and questioned by
police,’’ it said.
It said that the individuals,
who were detained during the operation, were also found to be involved
in other forms of crimes, including human trafficking, drug trafficking,
cybercrime and terrorism.
“This type of fraud not
only targets innocent consumers by stealing their payment card details,
it also poses significant risks to global security by allowing
criminals and terrorists to travel under the radar.
“Only
through coordinated interventions such as the Airport Action Days can
track down the organised criminal networks behind this large-scale
fraud.
``Also detaining the criminals involved
before they have the chance to commit other crimes is important,” the
INTERPOL Secretary General, Jürgen Stock said.
INTERPOL
said that representatives from airlines, online travel agencies and
payment card companies worked together with law enforcement to identify
suspicious airline ticket purchases and send the information to law
enforcement officers deployed at the participating airports.
Payment
card issuers, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and
Perseus, the global travel industry’s fraud review structure, supported
the operation by providing additional information to confirm suspicious
transactions.
“With thousands of airline bookings
made online daily, it is by such coordinated, targeted and intensive
checks being carried out simultaneously that the potential fraudulent
use of credit cards can be detected.
``That is the only way the fraudsters can be arrested,’’ Rob Wainwright, Director of Europol, said.
In
addition to coordinating the information exchange and investigations
across Asia and the Middle East, INTERPOL conducted checks against its
criminal databases, including its nominal and Stolen and Lost Travel
Documents (SLTD) databases.
James Anderson,
Head of INTERPOL’s Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes unit
highlighted the importance of collaboration between law enforcement and
private industry partners in detecting fraudulent airline ticket
purchases.
The statement said that some 74
airlines and 43 countries were involved in this year’s action, which
took place at more than 130 airports across the world.
INTERPOL
coordinated the operational activity of 16 airlines and police in nine
countries located at 12 airports in the Asia-Pacific and Middle East
regions.
It said that the operation was timed to coincide with the Euro 2016 football tournament.
It
said that was one of the reasons why particular attention was paid to
passengers travelling to the host country, France, with checks conducted
at local airports and in departure countries.
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