Published
The International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) held a course on the Prosecution of Environmental Crimes taught by experts of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Justice Department of the United States of America (ENRD) with the participation of law enforcement officials from Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Peru, and El Salvador.
Environmental crimes are a threat for the entire planet and investigators of such crimes seek to protect the various ecosystems thereby preventing death and destruction on a large scale.
The training course was aimed at law enforcement officials responsible for enforcing environmental laws and it presented to them successful case studies that required a variety of investigative techniques and evidence collection.
Countries need to enhance and enforce their environmental legislation in order to facilitate the investigative process and more swiftly bring to justice those who cause harm to the environment.
ILEA San Salvador urges law enforcement professionals to adopt a broader view on environmental crimes such as trafficking in endangered species and illegal logging and to act diligently and swiftly in order to successfully prosecute environmental crimes.