Minister Harris welcomes upgrade to EU security system to help tackle serious crime and terrorism

• improvements to the exchange of security information, particularly in relation to biometrics and DNA, across the EU to help fight terrorism and serious crime
• Minister Harris discusses latest developments at meeting of EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministers in Brussels
• An Garda Síochána go live with new system this week

Minister for Justice Simon Harris has welcomed the launch of an updated information sharing system across the EU to help fight terrorism and serious crime.

The Schengen Information System (SIS) Recast will allow for enhanced information sharing on people and objects, allowing national authorities to better pursue and prevent serious crimes and terrorism.

The SIS Recast by the European Commission has been fully implemented by An Garda Síochána, working in close collaboration with the Commission and other participating States.

It is the largest and most widely used IT system for public security in Europe and has received new functionalities through this upgrade, which went live this week.

Minister Harris has been discussing the upgrade with his EU Justice and Home Affairs colleagues at a meeting in Brussels today.

Ireland connected to SIS in March 2021 and since then it has proven to be an extremely effective tool for An Garda Síochána in tackling crime domestically and also in contributing to international criminal investigations.

The system enables law enforcement agencies, including An Garda Síochána, to share and check data in real time on wanted persons, missing persons, persons who may not have the right to enter or stay in EU member states, and objects/vehicles that may have been stolen.

Under the updates this week, new types of biometrics, such as palm prints, fingermarks and DNA records (only in relation to missing persons) will be included on SIS to confirm and verify the identity of people registered in the system.

Authorities can also enter preventive alerts to protect certain categories of vulnerable persons, such as children at high risk of parental abduction, children at risk of becoming victims of trafficking in human beings, and children at risk of being recruited as foreign terrorist fighters.

Minister Harris said:

Under the developments which went live this week, new alerts have been introduced across the SIS system.

These include:

• introduction of a new alert category of “unknown wanted persons” connected to a serious crime, e.g., persons whose fingerprints are found on a weapon used in a crime
• extension of the existing category of “missing persons” to “vulnerable persons who need to be prevented from travelling,” e.g., children at high risk of parental abduction, children at risk of becoming victims of trafficking in human beings, and children at risk of being recruited as foreign terrorist fighters
• creation of the new category “inquiry check” allowing national law enforcement authorities to stop and interview a person in order for the issuing Member State to obtain detailed information
• introduction of the category of “objects of high value,” e.g., items of information technology such as laptops, which can be identified and searched with a unique identification number
• obligation for Member States to create SIS alerts for cases related to terrorist offences
• obligation to inform Europol of hit alerts linked to terrorism in order to help to “connect the dots” of terrorism at the European level

Ireland is not a member of the Schengen area but takes part in some policing co-operation arrangements which are part of the Schengen Agreement and can now provide and receive data under SIS II.

There are currently 30 countries connected to SIS – 26 EU member states and 4 associated Schengen countries (Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein, and Iceland).

Recent successes under SIS include the following.

Article 26 Alert (EAW): Hit on Polish Alert February 2023

Four Polish fugitives living in Ireland were sent back to Poland in February 2023 to serve prison sentences after checks via SIS. All four people were identified as a result of ‘Hits’ on the EU criminal Schengen database system.

Article 26 Alert (EAW): created by Germany on 15 December 2022

Romanian male wanted by Germany for an armed robbery carried out in 2016.

Subject was detected and arrested by authorities at Dublin Airport on 5 February 2023.

Article 26 Alert (EAW): created by Ireland on 21 November 2022

An Albanian National wanted in relation to possession of controlled drugs with intent to supply since 2015. Male arrested at Dusseldorf airport while attempting to board flight to Barcelona. Subject arrested 78 days after the SIS Alert was created.

Article 26 Alert (EAW): created by Ireland on 6 December 2022

A Norwegian male, committed fraud offences in Ireland in 2020. He had left the country and was believed to be in Holland. Subject arrested in Spain on 14 January 2023.

Article 26 Alert (EAW): created by France on 1 October 2022

A male suspected of having killed his father fled to Ireland after the incident. He was described as very dangerous and violent by those close to him. An operation was immediately put in place to locate and arrest the subject. On 2 October 2022, a male matching the description of subject was sighted and was arrested. Subject was surrendered to France on 2 November 2022.

Article 26 Alert (EAW): created by Ireland on 17 May 2022

A Moroccan female took her child out of Ireland in March 2022 in breach of an Irish Court order. On 9 February 2023 the Mother attempted to board a flight in Brussels airport to Tangiers, Morocco with the child. The Subject was arrested and the child was taken into temporary care of Belgian child protection agency.

Article 26 Alert (EAW): created by Ireland on 10 May 2021

A Polish male was wanted in Ireland for Drugs Offences – Possession of drugs worth €45,000 in Tralee in 2010. Subject arrested in Poland on 14 February 2023.