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    • Frontex, Europol and national authorities seize over 420,000 counterfeit items and 17.5 million cigarettes at EU borders

    2025-12-10

    Frontex and Europol coordinated Joint Action Days “Pirates 3”, an operation at the EU’s external borders targeting criminal networks smuggling people and goods. The operation ran from 6 to 17 October and led to the detection of 64 irregular border crossings, along with the seizure of more than 420,000 counterfeit items, 17.5 million cigarettes and 1.1 million euro in undeclared cash.

    Joint Action Days are large-scale, intelligence-led operations that bring together police, customs, border and other authorities from multiple countries, as well as EU agencies, to target priority criminal activities under the EU’s EMPACT security framework. During “Pirates 3”, participating authorities intensified checks at border crossing points, in border areas and along key transport routes.

    Results of JAD “Pirates 3” included:

    • Irregular migration: 64 cases of illegal border crossings detected;
    • Document fraud: 261 falsified or fraudulent travel and identity documents seized (passports, ID cards, residence permits and driving licences);
    • Counterfeit goods: over 420,000 items seized, including textiles, footwear, accessories, car parts, toys, cosmetics and electronics;
    • Excise goods: more than 17.5 million cigarettes and 6,500 e-cigarettes intercepted;
    • Drugs: 1,698 kg of marijuana and 1.2 kg of methamphetamine seized;
    • Firearms: 148 pistols, 179 magazines and 122 cartridges confiscated;
    • Undeclared goods and cash: 109,402 pharmaceutical pills, 134 luxury watches, 107 kg of food products and €1,156,370 in undeclared cash detected.

    Bulgaria led the operation together with Portugal. Law enforcement authorities from Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Ukraine and Serbia took part. Europol and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) worked alongside Frontex to detect irregular migration, combat document fraud and intercept counterfeit and prohibited goods.

    Their efforts led to numerous detections of irregular migration and significant seizures of fraudulent documents, counterfeit products, excise goods, drugs, weapons and undeclared cash.

    Joining forces against organised crime

    “‘Pirates 3’ shows what happens when Europe stands shoulder to shoulder,” said Frontex Executive Director Hans Leijtens. “When we share what we know and act together with Europol, the EUIPO, and our Member States, we cut through the noise and go straight after the networks that try to profit from people. Our message is simple: Europe’s borders are not a playground for criminal groups.”

    Europol supported the operation by providing operational analysis and cross-checking data against its criminal databases, ensuring that new leads and links to ongoing investigations could be followed up quickly. Frontex officers were deployed to key border points to assist with screening, risk analysis and detection. EUIPO experts helped to identify counterfeit goods and protect legitimate EU brands.

    Background

    The Joint Action Days “Pirates 3” took place within the framework of EMPACT — the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats. EMPACT is an EU-wide security initiative that brings together Member States, EU agencies and international partners to tackle the most serious criminal threats facing the European Union. Frontex actively supports EMPACT operational actions focused on fighting migrant smuggling, trafficking in human beings and other forms of cross-border crime.