The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime assists governments & others to roll back global threats posed by drugs, organized crime, corruption & terrorism
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Joined December 2008
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Fraud can affect anyone.
A scam that drains a retiree’s savings.
A fake job offer that leads to exploitation.
Behind them are criminal networks driven by profit.
Ahead of Sunday’s #StopOrganizedCrime Day, let’s follow the money to stop them.
ow.ly/6lWG5104pkp
ALT The illustration shows a person sitting on the floor and using a phone. A screen pops up asking to pay now with a phishing hook using money as bait next to it. The title reads: "Follow the money. Stop organized fraud."
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
For millions, accessing justice remains a challenge.
Discrimination, financial constraints and geographical barriers limit access to rights.
Co-organized by UNODC, the International Conference on Access to Justice begins in South Africa.
🔴 Watch live: shorturl.at/g4vtD
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
Children’s first encounter with a criminal is increasingly through a screen. At the @Europarl_EN, @UNODC joined the Duke of Sussex & global leaders to call for safety-by-design, collective action, and financial institutions to stop online child abuse before it happens.
Link: bit.ly/4Ala7E3
Can you guess the crime? 🔎
It's time for TOCtionary!
Today's hint: A deceptive attempt to steal sensitive information through fake emails, messages or websites.
Think you know the answer? Drop it in the comments!
#StopOrganizedCrime
ALT The image shows a monitor with passwords, files and credit cards being fished with hooks. Below is an incomplete word that starts with the letter "p" and followed by 7 empty letters.
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
Can you guess the crime? 🔎
It's time for TOCtionary!
Today's hint: A deceptive attempt to steal sensitive information through fake emails, messages or websites.
Think you know the answer? Drop it in the comments!
#StopOrganizedCrime
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
An in-depth dialogue with Board of the South Africa Banking information Centre (SABRIC) in Midrand.
I thank Sis Bongi Kunene, CEO Banking Association South Africa @BankingAssocSA and Board Chair of SABRIC, and her team with whom we had an in-depth exchange on the growing quantum of illicit financial flows that are aiding a converging crime ecosystem across borders.
We underscored the imperative for cooperation of agencies in the public and private sectors; the need for building both competencies and the provision of appropriate tools for tracing and combating illicit flows of finance; and the need to scale operations in order to protect people and the economy.
Undoubtedly, combating these complex transnational networks requires specialized expertise and a unified front across agencies and jurisdictions.
I commend SABRIC for the strong partnerships they continue to forge across all sectors. UNODC stands ready to enhance our partnership with SABRI, and to provide the platform for sharing its experience and expertise in other countries and regions.
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
What is goAML? 🔍
UNODC’s software solution helps Financial Intelligence Units detect, analyse and share information on suspicious transactions across borders.
Lisette Heerze, new Chair of the goAML International Users Group, on how to follow the money: bit.ly/4jaW0LP
From crypto to e-payments, criminals exploit digital platforms to move illicit money.
Every suspicious transaction flagged, every risk reported helps stop fraud.
Cooperation between tech, finance & law enforcement can close these gaps.
#StopOrganizedCrime
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
On 11 February 1990, history was made as Nelson Mandela walked out of the Victor Vester Prison to freedom. That walk changed the course of South Africa, and the world.
And so it was that I shared the memory of that definitive moment when I visited the renamed Drakenstein Correctional Centre in Paarl, Cape Town.
Significantly, this institution is home to the Nelson Mandela Rules Training Academy, dedicated to the UN standards on treatment of prisoners.
A site once defined by the deprivation of liberty has been turned into a premier continental center of excellence for humane prison management, rehabilitation, and the protection of human dignity.
I thank Mr. Makgothi Thobakgale, National Commissioner of the Department of Correctional Services in South Africa, for operationalising this institution. Together with his team, including the Regional Commissioner, extended the UNODC team a warm welcome and a productive engagement.
As custodian of the Mandela Rules, @UNODC is committed to partnering with South Africa to strengthen training capacity and build resilient, future-ready correctional systems.
By investing in sustainable justice reform, we ensure that Madiba’s legacy is not just remembered, it is actively put into practice across the continent and beyond.
Fraud doesn’t always look like a crime.
Sometimes, it looks like a message. A call. An opportunity that feels too good to miss.
Learn more about this crime and UNODC’s role in combating it: ow.ly/10Rk5103gXJ
#StopOrganizedCrime
UNODC’s @Monica_Juma_ visited @DCS_ZA's Drakenstein Correctional Centre, Nelson Mandela House & the Nelson Mandela Rules Training Academy.
UNODC is the guardian of the #MandelaRules supporting humane prison management that protects the rights and dignity of people in detention.
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
Was delighted to participate at the high-level Eastern and Southern Africa Commission on Drugs meeting themed “Rethinking current policy responses to drug use and personal possession” in Cape Town, and to deliver an opening statement on the growing drug challenge in the region.
As criminal syndicates shift from trafficking to manufacturing synthetic drugs directly on African soil, our strategic responses must evolve to target these networks and the corruption that enables their harmful operations.
We need an integrated approach to protect youth, vulnerable populations and communities. We must also replace stigma with evidence-based prevention, treatment, and robust harm reduction.
@UNODC stands ready to support Member States in implementing people-centered, human rights-aligned policies that offer clear alternatives to punishment and safeguard public health.
My sincere gratitude to His Excellency Kgalema Motlanthe for his leadership of the ESACD, for convening this crucial and timely regional dialogue and for inviting me to join and participate. UNODC looks forward to the outcomes of the meeting and to strengthen cooperation with all actors engaged in the search for, and execution of, effective responses to the growing drug challenges in the region and beyond.
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
🚨 262 arrests in operation targeting migrant smuggling across the Mediterranean
An international operation targeting criminal organizations involved in migrant smuggling across the Mediterranean Sea and the West African Atlantic route has resulted in 262 arrests and 434 new investigations.
In just four days, participating agencies identified 41 different organized criminal groups involved in migrant smuggling. In a significant case, Libyan authorities rescued 34 potential victims of human trafficking and arrested three individuals for their suspected involvement in an organized criminal group engaged in human trafficking, migrant smuggling and extortion.
Officers also checked more than 378,000 individuals, monitored hotspots, strengthened screening at key locations and pursued investigative leads, resulting in:
🔵 109 potential victims identified
🔵 1,715 irregular migrants detected
The initiative brought together law enforcement and border management agencies from 16 countries across North and West Africa, southern Europe and the Middle East. It was led by @INTERPOL_HQ with operational support from @Europol, @Frontex, @AFRIPOLOfficial, the @UNmigration and the @UNODC.
Funded by EU 🇪🇺
➡️ 🔗 interpol.int/News-and-Events…
Every transfer and transaction leaves a trail that can help expose organized fraud.
With stronger cyber skills, coordinated financial investigations and cross-sector cooperation, law enforcement can follow the money and dismantle criminal networks.
#StopOrganizedCrime
ALT The illustration shows a magnifying glass highlighting a fingerprint on a document, with a world map, currency note, and ID photos in the background.
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
The countdown is on for #StopOrganizedCrime Day.
This year, we're shining a spotlight on fraud.
What may seem like just a scam is often linked to organized crime. Following the money helps uncover the networks behind it.
Join us on 15 November 🔗 bit.ly/TOCDAY26
A stolen card number doesn't always end with one fraudulent transaction.
Criminals can sell stolen financial information, enabling further scams.
Always verify requests for your bank details and check that platforms are legitimate.
#StopOrganizedCrime
ALT The illustration shows a red claw machine filled with credit cards. Alongside is the following text: "Don't let your bank details fall into the wrong hands. Your stolen bank details could be sold to other criminals"
Southern Africa faces growing threats of organized crime, from drug trafficking and minerals crime to online fraud.
@UNODC_ROSAF works with countries in the region to combat these crimes and improve the capacity of law enforcement and justice systems to respond.
ALT The image shows the close up of a highway with a billboard reading "Just Be Kind". Alongside is the following text: "South Africa. Host country of UNODC Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSAF). Supporting 11 countries across the region."
ALT The image shows a group of UNODC officers, police officers and researchers examining a suitcase. Alongside is the following text: "Key Crime Threats across Southern Africa: Drug trafficking and growing production of synthetic drugs. Crime involving critical minerals. Cybercrime and online fraud. Corruption and financial crime."
ALT The image shows a mountain in the background. In the centre are two images of a snake and seized timber. Alongside is the following text: "Organized Crime is evolving across southern Africa. Exploiting borders, ports and trade routes Targeting digital platforms and financial systems Using corruption to operate Hiding illicit goods in complex supply chains Undermining institutions, economies and livelihoods".
ALT The image shows the executive director of U N O D C talking to other representatives. Alongside is the following text: "U N O D C support across the region: Improving border management and port security Combating drug trafficking Protecting critical mineral supply chains Tackling corruption and financial crime Building capacity to investigate cybercrime Enhancing justice systems".
UN Office on Drugs & Crime retweeted
Landed in Cape Town for a week-long strategic mission focusing on Southern Africa.
In Cape Town, I will participate at the High-Level Segment of the Expert Group Meeting of the East and Southern Africa Commission on Drugs (ESACD) and hold bilateral meetings with various officials. Then, I head to Pretoria for a series of engagements with other partners of @UNODC.
Moving onward to Sun City, I will give my keynote address on the Criminal Justice System at the International Conference on Access to Justice, and engage further with participants drawn from the region.
On arrival, I was received by Mr. Rodney Isaacs, Provincial Head of Department of Justice and Constitutional Development in Cape Town, and Jane Marie Ongolo, UNODC Regional Representative for Southern Africa.
Human trafficking into scam operations is a multibillion-dollar criminal business.
Scams caused an estimated US$18–37 billion in losses across East and Southeast Asia in 2023 alone. The illicit profits fuel other organized criminal activities.
#EndHumanTrafficking
Drug trafficking remains the primary source of income for organized criminal groups worldwide.
Fueled by persistent demand, the illicit drug trade generates billions each year, driving violence and weakening governance and the rule of law.
Learn more: bit.ly/TOCBrief
