crime
Verdict after Encrochat investigation: no decision
The Federal Constitutional Court comments on criminal judgments after evaluating data that French investigators found on mobile phones from the provider Encrochat. photo
© Sebastian Kahnert/dpa
The Federal Constitutional Court has not accepted several constitutional complaints for decision. What does that mean?
It remains unclear whether German courts were allowed to convict criminals after French authorities had evaluated data from the encrypted Encrochat communications system. The According to information from Tuesday, the Federal Constitutional Court did not accept several constitutional complaints for decision.
As the court emphasized, the matter has not been decided on constitutional questions regarding the usability of the Encrochat data. Five other constitutional complaints on the subject are currently pending in Karlsruhe.
After French and later Dutch authorities cracked the system and smashed the criminal network three years ago, thousands of investigations began – many with a connection to Germany. It’s mainly about drug deals, but also about assassination attempts, robberies and money laundering. The investigative agency Europol reported in June that more than 6,500 people had been arrested and almost 900 million euros confiscated.
According to the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), around 3,800 investigations have been initiated in connection with Encrochat and around 400 ongoing investigations have been supported (as of June 30, 2023). As a result, there have been 974 convictions so far.
The decision of the highest German court involved, among other things, a case from the Rostock district court. The Federal Court of Justice had rejected the appeal of the accused last year. He saw the knowledge gained from monitoring communication via Encrochat “as usable in criminal proceedings”.