V. Kondratovičius says that this idea was born from observing the rising challenges in the fight against smuggling, including a law enforcement investigation into a smuggling network.
“We saw that when it comes to a certain type of crime, today we have many institutions, they are fragmented, there are clashes where one has not yet started investigating, another is already finishing, creating an opportunity for criminals to operate widely. This was also shown by the recent crisis,” – 15min said V. Kondratovičius, referring to the high-profile investigation in which 13 police officers and border guards are suspected of abuse of office.
V. Kondratovičius says that this institution would investigate crimes related to excise tax evasion, smuggling, and VAT fraud schemes.
He said he has already discussed this idea with Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė and Finance Minister Kristupas Vaitiekūnas.
V. Kondratovičius says the idea was inspired by a joint task force that has been successfully operating for some time, formed in October from border guards, customs, the Criminal Police Bureau, and the Special Investigation Service specifically to combat smuggling balloons.
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“You can already see the result because there is information sharing. That result exists, but a permanent structure is desired that would provide greater synergy. Because here there are different councils, synergy, project management, one organization allocates more resources, another less, and the result is not as fast as one would like,” admitted V. Kondratovičius.
The minister named when such an institution could start operating and which crimes would be left for the police to investigate.
According to him, establishing one service would also clarify the responsibility of officers “from start to finish.”
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