Eurojust President, Mr Ladislav Hamran, said: ‘Better protection of crime victims is a key policy of the European Union. Eurojust, in coordination with other Justice and Home Affairs Agencies, is committed to enhancing victims’ rights by making them an integral part of our operational activities. Safeguarding the position and interests of victims deserves to be high on the agenda of any coordination meeting or joint investigation team that we support.’

Identifying victims of cross-border crimes requires effective information exchanges among the judicial authorities of the countries of the victims. Especially in cases of violent and large-scale crimes, exchanges of evidence, such as victims’ testimonies, are important to progress the investigation.

It also helps to avoid repeated exposure of victims to the perpetrator and the wider criminal process (secondary victimisation). Further challenges include the right to restitution and compensation in cases involving large numbers of victims or differences in national legal systems. Here, the work of Eurojust can be complementary to the agencies specialised in dealing with compensation.

Giving the rights and position of crime victims a key role in the coordination of cross-border investigations is already an integral part of Eurojust’s tasks and should be further strengthened.  The report therefore puts forward a number of best practices; for example, the early involvement of judicial authorities has proven to be essential in facilitating discussions to better address jurisdictional issues based on victims’ interests.

In cross-border cases, Eurojust’s expertise can be instrumental in finding concrete ways to identify victims and inform them of their rights. Eurojust can also facilitate decision-making between judicial authorities with regard to arranging interviews of victims, to avoid the risk of secondary victimisation, and ensuring the admissibility of the evidence they provide.