Lithuania, France, Latvia, Poland, Switzerland and Georgia participated in this operation.
The alleged members of the network, of Georgian origin, committed thefts from libraries located in France, Germany, Lithuania, Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Switzerland. Among the stolen works are works by famous Russian novelists such as Pushkin, Gogol and Lermontov.
The operation, coordinated by Eurojust and Europol, led to the arrest of four suspects in Georgia. A total of 27 sites were raided in Georgia and Latvia. A stolen book was recovered and numerous other works, which have yet to be examined, were also seized. During the operation, ten witnesses were questioned and more than a hundred police officers and prosecutors were mobilized.
The organized criminal group (OCG) used different methods to steal the books, including impersonating researchers when ordering books or replacing the originals with copies. In other cases, the criminals simply forced their way into libraries to steal the books.
Eurojust has supported the case since November 2023, helping the authorities involved to coordinate their investigations and facilitating the establishment of a joint investigation team between France, Lithuania, Poland, Georgia and Switzerland in March 2024.
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