Types of Crime and Investigations

Human Smuggling

Since summer 2015, Austria has cracked down on human smuggling. The Sub-Department for Trafficking in Human Beings and Human Smuggling has, therefore, expanded the office space and increased their staff. It was upon the initiative of Austria that the Joint Operational Office (JOO) to fight organised human smuggling was opened in Vienna in May 2016 as a common European measure. In the course of numerous special operations, defined hotspots were checked in cooperation with local forces and the provincial CIDs. Moreover, a considerable number of investigations have been pursued against organised networks of human smugglers. The JOO also participates in international Joint Action Days in the context of the European multidisciplinary platform against criminal threats (EMPACT). This measure of checks and searches, coordinated by Europol, takes place simultaneously in several countries of the European Union. Besides operational measures, the JOO also contributes to situation reports and analyses of irregular migration flows and the relevant fight against human smuggling.