site.btaOver 20 People Charged with Trafficking in Antiquities, Money Laundering in Joint Bulgarian, European Operation

More than 20 people have been charged with antiquities trafficking and money laundering with most of those charged being Bulgarian nationals with dual citizenship, Deputy Sofia City Prosecutor Angel Kanev told a news briefing here on Thursday. Kanev added that the criminal group has been operating in Western Europe, the Balkans, the United States and other countries for over 16 years and so far, over a billion dollars have been identified as part of the money laundering investigation. The arrests are part of an international operation carried out in more than eight European countries.

Kanev explained that Bulgaria coordinated with Eurojust and Europol, and cars, safes and other items belonging to the criminal group had been seized. Many unique artefacts were discovered, including gold, silver, bronze and ceramic items, as well as coins. Some of these items are already known to be part of the world's cultural heritage and their total value exceeds BGN 100 million. The prosecutor added that they had found several hundred artefacts stolen about 10 years ago from a private collection. The artefacts found so far are being guarded by the Ministry of the Interior. 

Boyan Raev, Chief Commissioner of the General Directorate for Combating Organised Crime (GDCOC) stated that over 220 officers conducted searches and seizures on the ground over the course of 30 hours. 35 people have been detained, with many of them having strict roles within the criminal organization, such as treasure hunters, dealers, and traffickers. He added that in Bulgaria, the operation was carried out in Sofia, Stara Zagora, Vidin, Razgrad, Harmanli, Dupnitsa, Varna, Shumen, Veliko Tarnovo, Dolni Dabnik, Pleven, Cherven Bryag, and Novi Pazar.

According to Paolo Befera, deputy head of the Italian Carabinieri's specialized cultural heritage protection directorate, this operation should be considered as the largest operation of this manner ever conducted. He praised the quick and organized way in which the police worked with the prosecution service, allowing for coordinated action very quickly. He added that in Italy alone, around 300 historical artefacts from the 3rd century BC to the 3rd century CE were found.

According to Jens Liedhegener, head of the Property Crime Unit at Europol's European Serious Organised Crime Centre, this is the largest operation in the field of cultural heritage in which Europol has participated. He added that cooperation is very important, but so is the protection and preservation of cultural objects.