From supporting the French authorities during the summer Olympics, through helping during a search and rescue operation in Greece, to detecting smuggled drugs and stolen cars, Frontex officers worked hard all across Europe in July. Read last month’s stories from the field!
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Last month in the field: July 2024
2024-08-05
Support to France for the Summer Olympics
Frontex has sent a record number of officers to support the French authorities for the time of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Together, we ensure that the event is safe and successful for all participants and visitors.
Between July and September, an average of 230 EU border guard officers support the efforts of French law enforcement. The officers perform first-line checks on travellers at international airports, seaports, railway, and road stations. Just at the Paris airports, over 125 Frontex officers support border control measures.
This operation marks Frontex's highest reinforcement for a specific large event.
Smuggling detected in Spain
In a recent high-stakes operation in Spain, our plane played a key role in tracking down two people smugglers.
Following a tip-off from the Spanish authorities, a Frontex plane spotted a speedboat carrying two smugglers who had just disembarked a dozen migrants off the coast of Almeria. Spain’s Guardia Civil gave chase. Seeing no chance of escape, the suspects abandoned the boat.
Our aircraft continued the pursuit by relaying real-time information to Spanish patrols. The smugglers were caught!
The Frontex aircraft is in Spain as part of the Joint Operation Indalo. The Guardia Civil Maritime and Surveillance Coordination Centre led and coordinated the pursuit.
Stolen cars detected in Greece
What if stolen cars could speak?
Here are some of the adventurous stories of the cars detected by EU border guards working at the border stations in Kipi, Greece.
Alfa Romeo Stelvio: “I was stolen in the south of France. My thieves paid 2,000 euros to two French drivers who took me to various places in France, Italy, and Greece where I went through various manipulations – they changed my VIN number, they put on counterfeit stickers, they faked my papers. I was prepped to have a new life in Türkiye. To my relief, the border guards in Kipi discovered everything. I am now stationed in Greece, waiting to see my owner again…”
Mercedes C class 220 wagon, BMW X7, and Mercedes A class 200: “We met in some dark bunker in Germany. We all lost our owners suddenly, we were stolen. Our new drivers were Georgian, they took us all the way to Greece where they suddenly stopped at the border. Guards in EU uniforms started checking us thoroughly, looking through all our papers. They found our names in the database of stolen vehicles – we were saved!”.
Porsche Panamera GTS: “I was suddenly abandoned on the exit line to Türkiye near the Kipi border point. When the EU border guards turned up, they first took the pictures, noted all the numbers. They drove me to the station and revealed that my numbers and papers belonged to another car somewhere in Romania! I could not believe it!”
Audi RS7: “Why me? - is a good question. It looked as if the EU border guards selected me randomly for a closer check. But it was not so random. They follow something called risk analysis to identify suspicious vehicles. Not that I am suspicious, but my Turkish drivers were. They just took me from my owners in Italy and drove for hours. The EU border guards found more! 45,000 euros of undeclared money hidden inside me. They used the word embezzlement. I am now seized and flabbergasted.”
