A new Europe-wide campaign has been launched urging the public to help trace convicted criminals who have been sentenced to at least five years in prison but remain on the run.
The initiative is being coordinated through the EU Most Wanted website, which publishes profiles of fugitives wanted by national authorities across Europe, Europol said in a statement on Thursday.
Police and law enforcement authorities from 11 countries are taking part: Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Sweden.
The fugitives featured were convicted of offences ranging from drug trafficking, robbery and extortion to murder.
Cases highlighted include a 68-year-old sentenced to 29 years for murder in Belgium, a 25-year-old sentenced to 25 years for murder in Denmark, and a 33-year-old sentenced to 14 years for murder in Sweden, according to the EU Most Wanted listing.
Several drug trafficking convictions are also included, such as two individuals in Czechia aged 51 and 65 sentenced to 23 and 12 years, and a 59-year-old in Lithuania sentenced to 13 years.
How the public can share information
Members of the public are being asked to review the profiles on the EU Most Wanted site and report any information that could assist investigators, Europol said.
Tips can be submitted anonymously through the platform.
The website’s content is managed by the relevant national authorities through the European Network of Fugitive Active Search Teams (ENFAST) — a network that supports cross-border searches for wanted people — with support from Europol.
