Webinar Project DIVERT – Stealing precious steel: Firearms theft in the European Union

Date
26/05/2021
9:30 - 10:45

Free webinar, registration required. Please register here. 

Firearms theft is a significant method of diversion of firearms, their components and ammunition from legal into the illegal possession in the EU. Every year at least 20,000 firearms are registered as stolen in the EU. Stolen firearms have in recent years been used in various acts of gun crime and terrorist attacks across Europe. To prevent such theft the EU strengthened the required safe-storage requirements of the EU Firearms Directive in 2017 and recommends EU Member States to systematically register stolen firearms to improve the intelligence picture on this diversion method. Project DIVERT identified various subtypes of firearms theft in the EU. In this webinar we will present the findings of Project DIVERT on the scope, targets, perpetrators, modus operandi and other characteristics of these various subtypes of firearms thefts. After this presentation, European firearms experts will reflect upon these findings from a policy, law enforcement and research perspective.

AGENDA

9:30 Welcome
9:35 The scope and characteristics of firearms theft in the EU
Quitterie de Labbey (Flemish Peace Institute)
9:50 Firearms theft in Belgium
Frédéric Quewet (Belgian Federal Police)
10:00 Q&A
10:05 Preventing and combating firearms theft: possibilities and challenges
Ian Head (NABIS)
10:15 Firearms theft in the Western Balkans: lessons learned
Alain Lapon (SEESAC)
10:25: Gun violence with stolen firearms in the EU
Nils Duquet (Flemish Peace Institute)
10:35 Q&A
10:45 Closure

PRACTICALS

• Wed. 26/05/2021
• Start: 09:30 CEST (Brussels Time) – Duration: +/- 75 min.
• Zoom Webinar – Please register here.