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OSCE regional seminar on seizing and recovering the illegal proceeds of drugs and crime

Description

The purpose of the seminar, organised by the SPMU in co-operation with UNODC, was to share knowledge, experience and best practices with European jurisdictions on asset forfeitures as a vital part of the war against organized crime and corruption.

Summary

Participants of the Workshop in Vilnius in October 2010 on Comprehensive Co-operation in Synthetic Drug Supply Reduction in Baltic Region underlined that the most effective tool in combating drugs is by undermining the economic well-being of the drug dealer through assets confiscation. However, as no such praxis exists in the East European region, the participants requested a detailed case study in other countries with positive history of assets confiscation at home and abroad.

A three-day training seminar for drug enforcement experts, prosecutors, judges and representatives of the relevant financial institutions from Eastern Europe was held in premises of the OSCE Project Co-ordinator’s Office in Kyiv.

Practitioners from Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, the Russian Federation and Ukraine were encouraged to take part in the seminar organised by SPMU jointly with UNODC as a leading organization in combating drugs and crimes. Experts from other participating States with successful history of assets recovery were also invited to share lessons learned in this regard.