Awards

IAATI Award 2006

I want to ask your special attention for the next item. The winners of the IAATI Award European branch 2006.  We had several nominations for this award but the international investigation, we are talking about know, won the Award.

Some history:

2005. During a congress in Lanaken, Belgium, under the flag of IAATI European Branch, contacts were made between members, which had a fruitful follow up concluding in an international criminal investigation.

The facts:

Belgian police-officers were coordinating information, which resulted in the seizure of 12 high value containerised vehicles, ready for shipment through the harbour of Antwerp in the direction of Africa. 

The vehicles appeared to be stolen in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. It concerned high value young vehicles from the makes Porsche Cayenne, BMW and Mercedes.

As said the coordination of the investigation within the Belgium police force was in the hands from Peter Schepens and Gaston de Ridder.

Immediately after the start of the investigation contacts were made with Roland Brugger and Gerhard Harrich from the German police force. Most of the vehicles were stolen by home jacking in the various countries. After burglary keys were stolen and the vehicles disappeared direct from the spot.  Roland en Gerhard discovered, with the Belgium colleagues, that one of the seized vehicles from the containers was involved in the German investigation.

8 arrests were made in Belgium.

The ball started rolling international.  In Germany 3 arrests were made for the burglaries. The offenders were from origin from Yugoslavia.

85 vehicle thefts came on the account from the trio. The value from the stolen vehicles was estimated on 3.5 million Euros.  Also could be concluded that the instruction for the theft and vehicle ordering came from an African citizen.

The investigation is still going on and has a demonstrable starting point with historical theft of vehicles, which are still unsolved.  We are talking over a period from 2000 till 2005. The investigation has also blown out to the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark.  

 The Belgium colleagues saw a reason to nominate Henny Mulder, a private investigator in the Netherlands, for the IAATI award for his exceptional thorough work and professional attitude, in the support of the Belgian colleagues. They made contact with IAATI board members, which took over their request within the nomination committee. 

They could not suspect that they, themselves, also would be nominated for the IAATI Award,   like the German colleagues Roland en Gerhard.

In spite of the existing of all kinds international police cooperation, the bases for the start of an investigation was made during the Lanaken seminar, cooperation between public and private partners, under the flag of IAATI.  The professional dedication from the investigating experts did the rest. Further details from the investigations in Germany and Belgium will be presented by the colleagues from the respective countries.

I like to invite mr. Mulder, Mr. Brugger, Mr. Harrich, Mr. Schepens en Mr. de Ridder to step forewards.

The IAATI award winners donated Euro 500 to the Kinderhospiz in Duesseldorf. An amount from Euro 1500 was added as a result from the raffle during the dinner. So a total amount of Euro 2000 went to this organisation, doing a hell of a job in helping children who are incurable ill.
 

Director's Award 2006

The winner of the directors award 2006 is Ronald Van Den Hoeck. Further information on the members area.