Fiches Belges

Controlled deliveries are provided for in French law in Articles 706-30 et seq. of the Code of Criminal Procedure and Article 67bis of the Customs Code. Concerning the Code of Criminal Procedure : The public prosecutor in whose jurisdiction the operations are likely to begin, as well as the public prosecutor already in charge of the case, must be informed and may object. Controlled deliveries are carried out under the control of the judicial authority. Concerning the Customs Code : Authorised customs officers may carry out surveillance of persons or the transport of goods when there are one or more plausible reasons to suspect the persons under surveillance of being the perpetrators of a customs offence punishable by a sentence of two years or more. The public prosecutor in whose jurisdiction the operations are likely to begin must be informed and may object. In these two cases of controlled deliveries, the investigating authorities may request that the persons under surveillance not be checked and arrested, nor the goods under surveillance be checked and seized, so as not to jeopardise the investigation. In the case of judicial proceedings, the request is made to the public prosecutor or investigating judge in charge of the investigations and, in the case of customs proceedings, to the public prosecutor in whose jurisdiction the surveillance operations are likely to begin. The investigating authorities may themselves deliver objects, goods or products in place of postal service providers or freight operators. Authorisation is requested, in the case of judicial proceedings, from the public prosecutor or investigating judge in charge of the investigations and, in the case of customs proceedings, from the public prosecutor in whose jurisdiction the surveillance operations are likely to begin. In matters of international mutual legal assistance, the decision to carry out controlled deliveries shall be taken in each individual case by the competent authorities of the requested Member State, with due regard for the national law of that Member State and shall take place in accordance with the procedures of that Member State. Controlled deliveries are permitted in the framework of criminal investigations into extraditable offences.

• Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Member States of the European Union of 29 May 2000 : art. 12 • Second additional Protocol to the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959 (2001): art. 18 • Directive 2014/41/EU of 3 April 2014 on the European Investigation Order in criminal matters : art. 28

• Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Member States of the European Union of 29 May 2000 : direct transmission to the judicial authority with territorial jurisdiction. More precisely, a request for mutual assistance of this type must be transmitted to the public prosecutor of the location where the goods entered French territory and, where appropriate, to a specialist interregional public prosecution service (for offences relating to organised crime). • In accordance with the declaration made by France to the Second additional Protocol to the Convention of 20 April 1959 : the public prosecutor who has territorial jurisdiction, or failing that, the public prosecutor of Paris. • Directive 2014/41/EU of 3 April 2014 on the European Investigation Order in criminal matters : direct transmission to the judicial authority with territorial jurisdiction.

• European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959 : A translation in French is not required (article 16) but it is nonetheless recommended that a translation be provided, in order to facilitate and expedite the execution of the request for assistance. • Convention of 29 May 2000 complementing this Convention do not raise any question of translation requirements. • Directive 2014/41/EU of 3 April 2014 on the European Investigation Order in criminal matters : French

• European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959 and MLA Convention of 29 May 2000 : The requested State executes the request for mutual legal assistance as soon as possible (Art. 1 Second additional Protocol to the Convention of 20 April 1959, art. 4 paragraph 2 Convention of 29 may 2000). • Directive 2014/41/EU of 3 April 2014 on the European Investigation Order : The competent authority must execute it as soon as possible and at the latest within 90 days after the decision of recognition of the EIO.

It is necessary to make a distinction between : a) a request for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters for the purpose of continuing, into France, a controlled delivery operation concerning goods of which the possession, the transport or the sale are prohibited ; and b) a request for the purpose of continuing into France the observation of a person (who may be carrying out the transport of goods). In the second case, and if the person concerned can be clearly identified, a request can be sent on the basis of article 40 of the Convention of 14 June 1985 on the application of the Schengen Agreements or article 12 of the Paris Agreement (cross-border observation). The authorisation for the cross-border observation is given by the French Ministry of Justice (Please see fiche Belge related to it). The request is sent to the French Ministry of Justice by means of a standard form transmitted via officer-to-officer (law enforcement) cooperation channels.