The Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) dismantled on Thursday an unprecedented organized crime group – the Romanian Crime Academy – which was specializing in thefts targeting luxury stores in Europe and was organized based on military hierarchy rules. Investigators monitored the members of the group for a long period and on Thursday conducted 52 house searches, taking in for hearings 34 persons, 27 of which are suspects, DIICOT informs.
Judicial sources stated for Agerpres that the group was led from prison by underworld member Adrian Botez, the founder of the Romanian Crime Academy that was organized on the basis of strict and well-devised military hierarchy rules. Botez was released from jail by mistake last year. The underworld member was sentenced to ten years in jail, executory sentence, for trying to assassinate another underworld member who was in jail for acts of terrorism.
The DIICOT spokesperson stated at a press conference that the crime group was made up of over 100 members, all recruited from Piatra Neamt County. They were trained to “break into luxury jewels or watches stores in the European Union.”
Likewise, the group was operating on the basis of a five-chapter Code and had a well-established organizational chart made up of commanders, active officers and retired officers (namely those above the age of 50). The homes in which the recruits were trained were rented in cities such as Bucharest, Cluj and Constanta and the training stage lasted 90 days.
Their attacks targeted stores in countries such as Great Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Netherlands and Belgium and the damages caused total EUR 10 M.
