Lisbon, July 11, 2025 (Lusa) - Portuguese authorities arrested nine people in Portugal and reported one victim of trafficking as part of an international operation against human trafficking that Interpol announced on Friday, an official source from Portugal’s criminal investigation police agency, PJ, told Lusa.
The PJ coordinated Operation Global Chain in Portugal and reported one victim of human trafficking for sexual exploitation; authorities arrested nine people: four for document forgery, four for fraud and one for illegal residence in the country and resisting and coercing an official.
Internationally, the operation led to the identification of 1,194 potential victims and the arrest of 158 suspects in 43 countries, Interpol revealed.
Operation ‘Global Chain’ took place between 1 June and 6 June and involved almost 15,000 officers from different countries.
Most of the nearly 1,200 potential victims came mainly from Romania, Ukraine, Colombia and China, according to Interpol, which is headquartered in Lyon, France.
The campaign, coordinated by Austria and Romania with the support of Interpol and the European agencies Europol and Frontex, the European coastguard, focused on combating sexual exploitation, forced delinquency and begging, with a particular focus on protecting minors.
Among the most notable cases were the dismantling of a network in Brazil that sent victims to Myanmar, the raid on massage parlours in Italy linked to trafficking, and the discovery of a child prostitution ring in Thailand.
The operation also dismantled a network in Ukraine that was about to send women to Berlin for sexual exploitation.
Authorities also carried out significant actions in Romania, Montenegro and Austria.
During the operation, inspectors examined more than 20,000 locations and checked almost one million people.
The police also seized drugs, weapons, forged documents and more than €277,000 in cash.
The European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT) coordinated the operation, and Interpol’s I-FORCE project and the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs provided funding.
FPA/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
