The police participated in a large-scale Europol-coordinated operation targeting organised crime networks involved in waste and pollution crime. The global operation, code-named Custos Viridis, took place between January and December 2025, bringing together partners from 71 countries and numerous international organisations in a joint effort.
The operation aimed to disrupt criminal networks engaged in environmental crime, waste trafficking, pollution, money laundering, tax evasion and corruption.
Starting with an intelligence phase between January to June 2025, the operational phase took place from July to December 2025. During the operation, the participants conducted 1,048 inspections globally, leading to the arrest of 337 individuals. In total, the seizures included:
- 127,149 tonnes of waste,
- 602 tonnes of polluting agents, including 398 tonnes of fluorinated greenhouse gases (FGas),
- 75 tonnes of pesticides,
- 2.3 tonnes of mercury,
- nearly 10 million euros in cash and bank accounts,
- around 130 vehicles, heavy machinery, firearms, apartments and companies.
It is estimated that the commercial value of the illicit FGas trade can range from 15 and 20 million euros, depending on the final destination of the illicit goods. Improper waste management, which could generate illicit profits of at least 31 million euros, includes various types of hazardous waste. Seizures comprise end-of-life vehicles, scrap metal, plastics, used solar panels, waste electrical and electronic equipment, tyres and textile waste.
During the operation, several organised crime networks were identified as responsible for illicit trafficking in waste, which is often illegally shipped to Africa, Asia and Latin America. Individual organised crime networks involved in the illicit trade in fluorinated greenhouse gases, pesticides and other substances were also identified. In the course of the operation, investigators identified new trends and criminal phenomena.
The operation Custos Viridis highlighted the global and flexible nature of organised crime networks involved in environmental crime, who show no regard for the environment and society, leading to excessive pollution and destruction of the environment.
The following countries and international organisations participated in the operation:
- Organisations and entities: Europol, Interpol, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), World Customs Organisation (WCO);
- Countries: Albania, Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Colombia, Congo (Democratic Republic), Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, Fiji, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Ireland, Kuwait, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Madagascar, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, North Macedonia, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Sweden, Thailand, Türkiye, Ukraine, Uruguay, Vietnam, Zimbabwe.
In Slovenia, the activities were coordinated by the police, with the participation of the Environment and Energy Inspectorate of the Republic of Slovenia and the Financial Administration of the Republic of Slovenia. The authorities conducted several joint enhanced inspections, during which they identified six illegal shipments of waste and seized a large number of cylinders containing prohibited fluorinated greenhouse gases.