Europol has successfully supported the Romanian law enforcement authorities in a case of child sexual abuse and exploitation, safeguarding a 3-year-old minor. During two house searches on 27 April 2017, the Romanian Police arrested three suspects. One man (aged 29) is suspected of sexually assaulting a 3-year-old child, and producing and distributing images of this sexual abuse online. The other two suspects are the parents of the child who are suspected of facilitating the sexual exploitation of their child in exchange for various amounts of money. During the house searches several data storage devices and mobile phones were seized. At the request of the Romanian Prosecutor’s Office, the three suspects are currently detained and judicial proceedings are ongoing. Europol’s role was to provide relevant intelligence about the suspects’ criminal activities to the Romanian authorities. The investigation in Romania was carried out by the Directorate for Combating Organised Crime, coordinated by prosecutors from the Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism, with specialised support from the Directorate of Special Operations, Romanian Gendarmerie and Europol.c.s. – Europol
