Europol ends ‘operational phase’ of Bahrain Victorious investigation
Europol reveals that 'the case is now in the hands of the judiciary.'
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The investigation into Bahrain Victorious is now in the “hands of the judiciary.”
That’s according to Europol, the EU’s police arm that helped coordinate a continent-wide series of raids into the WorldTour team just ahead of the 2022 Tour de France.
The UK magazine Cycling Weekly reported that Europol said the “operational phase” is concluded in the high-profile case.
“The operational phase of the coordinated action against the use of prohibited substances in cycling races is over,” Europol told Cycling Weekly.
“Europol supported the operational phase by deploying its officers in the participating countries to facilitate the exchange of information and provide forensic support for the seized electronic devices.
“The case is now in the hands of the judiciary,” Europol said.
Also read:
- Bahrain Victorious responds to pre-Tour de France raids: ‘We sleep like babies, we work like horses’
- Team boss said raids are motivated by ‘jealousy’
- Europol says it’s targeting ‘prohibitive practices’ in raids
The public comments from Europol are the latest news to come out of the high-profile raids in months. French prosecutors are investigating the evidence, but there has not been any official action or comment.
In June, officials from France, Belgium, Spain, Croatia, Italy, Poland, and Slovenia carried out a coordinated searches of riders and staffers of Bahrain Victorious.
Between June 27-30, a total of 14 locations were searched in six countries. Three people were interrogated, officials said.
Based on a request from the French authorities, Danish police also carried out searches at one of the Tour de France hotels in Copenhagen. The international activity was coordinated by Europol and Eurojust, officials said this summer.
Those raids come on the heels of hotel searches of the Bahrain Victorious team hotel late in the 2021 edition.
Bahrain Victorious denied any wrong-doing and after a series of public statements has not recently commented on the investigation.
