East European gangs still strong

In spite of measures in place for a decade, “East European gangs remain difficult to control,” headlines De Standaard, reporting on a press conference given by Belgian federal police on 25 May. The gangs, notably composed of “Roma members, mainly from Romania,” continue to pose a problem for police, who face a number of difficulties : the mobility of thieves “who enter the country for a period of a few days or a few months before returning to the East,” prison sentences that present an insufficient deterrent, the sheer number of gangs which are not linked to any central organisation, and finally the use of minors -- “ideal cat burglars, whose young age grants them relative immunity to harsh sentences if they are arrested.” In a comment piece, the Brussels daily remarks that member states which are thieves’ home countries must do more keep them in check, and points out that the criminals have damaged the reputation of Eastern Europeans working legally in Belgium.