BREAKTHROUGH REQUESTED


Marcel: The system and the approach of government must be reviewed. With too many rules, you create all sorts of gaps that criminals can jump into and do their business. They are very adaptive, we are very rigid. We spoke to many companies who told us they solved incidents for themselves instead of working with the public sector authorities. They had their own private detectives to solve problems.


“In Holland, the chance of criminals getting caught for a transport security crime is let’s say 17% but the chance you will be convicted for a jail term is maybe about 5%. So, criminals are naturally choosing to operate in a country where they see this type of ratio. Clearly, when law enforcement is understaffed, we know their focus is on Homicide, Drugs and Vice. So, criminals are very much aware that if they steal laptops, for example, it will bring them even more money to finance their drug trade, and the risk of getting caught is at a minimum. And, even if they are caught, they will be out of custody in a matter of weeks. I would say we need a taskforce to look at this, similar to the types of units we see in the US which focus specifically on cargo crime only.”


Marcel: “The main challenge might be in development of public-private partnerships. It is a complex challenge to work together but I would suggest starting with higher penalties and increased law enforcement to get support from the private companies to take part in partnerships. Private organisations are not law enforcers, they aren’t trying to catch crooks like the police. Government organisations need to realise that loss of profit and the reputational damage being done to organisations which are victims of cargo crime are the main elements for private companies. They do not still speak the same language on this.


“Inter-departmental awareness is needed. The traditional concept in fighting crime of


‘The biggest value of this report is that it has key influencers


talking about transport security and cargo crime at both the public and private levels. We must leverage this momentum.’ Marcel Saarloos,


Chair, TAPA EMEA


more penalties and more enforcement is OK for the short-term but, for the longer term, there needs to be more resilient solutions fighting this type of crime. It should be that the Ministry of Social Affairs, of Economic Affairs, should be engaged and taking part in the solution to influence the types of breeding grounds we are talking about.”


Eric: “TAPA EMEA can help in facilitating awareness by, for example, continuing to record incident registrations because TAPA’s data is often a lot better than that of law enforcement agencies. The Association can help to initiate international cooperation and awareness. Transport crime has an intrinsic element and it cannot only be fought in Holland. The ‘breakthrough’ needed should be international but we had to start somewhere.


11


Helping people cooperate, registration of criminal activity, and the TAPA Standards’ certificates are all key in trying to change this.”


“It is very clear that some companies organise their own law enforcement and want to keep things in-house. As a criminologist, I am fascinated by so-called closed communities that do not easily talk to the outside world because they are sometimes lacking trust. My hope is that our research firstly creates awareness and leads to a new level of liaison between industry, law enforcement and government. The research has got a reaction. We proved a lot of things and the negotiations about salaries, for example, have started. We have tried to start a movement and the government are now more aware of the bigger picture. I am satisfied with our work.”


TAPA EMEA: TO MAKE SUPPLY CHAINS MORE SECURE, WE NEED TO LOOK AT MORE THAN JUST CRIME


Marcel Saarloos, Chair of TAPA EMEA, was one of the supply chain security specialists interviewed for the ‘Breakthrough Requested’ report….


“TAPA EMEA commends Transport en Logistiek Nederland (TLN) and the Ministry of Justice and Security for leading this initiative and supporting the production of this report, which provides valuable intelligence and insight which can lead to increased supply chain resilience.


“While we know from TAPA’s Incident Information Service (IIS) data that cargo crime is a major concern for businesses in the Netherlands, the same is true across the EMEA region. In 2020, we recorded cargo losses in 56 countries in EMEA. So, we hope the findings of this report will resonate with government departments, law enforcement agencies and companies across our region.


“Instinctively, when a cargo crime occurs, we look at the immediate incident information and our focus is on recovery. This report reminds us that, in order to find a long-term and sustainable crime prevention solution, we need to also look deeper at the causes of criminality. Yes, there are large numbers of Organised Crime


Groups operating in Europe, for example, which are targeting supply chains – but there are clearly steps that can be taken to make it more difficult for them to ‘recruit’ or influence others to facilitate these crimes.


“This, of course, is only one aspect of the types of cargo thefts we record in EMEA on an almost daily basis. TAPA EMEA works closely with national Law Enforcement Agencies and they clearly take the issue of cargo crime seriously, but we cannot stand back and expect police forces to solve problems without any support. At TAPA EMEA, we are pleased to see the report highlighting the need for cargo crime data to be recorded and shared. We also welcome the author’s appreciation of the value of TAPA’s Security Standards in helping to tackle the issue of cargo losses from facilities and vehicles. Looking at the wider causes of thefts from supply chains, it also highlights the importance of secure parking for trucks and the need to rapidly expand the number of secure parking places. These are all key areas of focus for TAPA EMEA.


“The biggest value of this report is that it has key influencers talking about transport security and cargo crime at both the public and private levels. We must now look for ways to leverage this momentum. It will take time, but the debate has started.”


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26