Fight against fraud and crime, Niamey police trained
(B2) The Nigerian police recently fell victim to a forger. The individual, now in prison, made copies of police officers' business cards and used them to infiltrate police stations. To deal with this, the Nigerien authorities turned to the EU security capacity support mission in Niger, EUCAP Sahel Niger.
Delivery of a new printer
Until now, the police card of Nigerien officers did not include any particular security. This card could be counterfeited using a simple badge machine. EUCAP Sahel Niger therefore provided a new printer to the authorities in Niamey and trained the unit in charge of its use. Nigerien police cards are now covered on both sides with a tamper-proof personalized holographic lamina. " The hologram was drawn by us and only Nigerien police services can obtain it from the distributor explains Moustapha Tahirou, director of the Technical and Scientific Police of Niamey.
Modernization of the Technical and Scientific Police
More generally, the Europeans supported the technical and scientific police (PTS) in its reorganization, in order to modernize it. It is now made up of four divisions: the forensic science laboratory division, the IT and technological traces division, the identification division and the technical training division. On the balance sheet. " in 2016, we were called upon in 97 cases, compared to 55 in 2015, an increase of 57%. The Identification Division recorded a 20% increase in findings. There is also a 14% increase in reported individuals. »
Creation of a center of excellence for West Africa?
Nigeriens now want to go further. " We want to capitalize on our achievements and explore new areas. Crime is constantly changing and we need to adapt. We plan to make our PTS laboratory a center of excellence for West Africa. But to achieve this, our will will not be enough, we are sorely lacking in means underlines the director of the PTS. EUCAP Sahel Niger's support is " an essential ».
(Leonor Hubaut)