Romanian Verdict Acquitting Alleged Roma Child Traffickers Condemned

Rights groups in Romania savaged a court verdict on Monday, acquitting 25 men of charges of trafficking scores of Roma children. The ruling, which is final and cannot be appealed, has reignited controversy about the decade-long case, which was widely seen as a test of Romania's commitment to fighting trafficking and modern slavery.

"It is a huge failure of the Romanian justice system," Silvia Tabusca, coordinator of the Human Security Programme at the European Centre for Legal Education and Research, a Bucharest-based rights group, told BIRN.

"We are talking on the one hand about an extremely vulnerable group of people that need to be protected, a very large group of Roma children. On the other hand, this is cross-border organised crime that puts in jeopardy the entire security of Europe."

The 25 men from Tandarei - all members of the Roma minority - faced trial after a joint British-Romanian investigation into what Europol described as one of Europe's biggest child trafficking rings. They were charged with trafficking minors, running an organised crime group, money laundering and firearms violations. All denied the charges.

Initially, there were 26 accused. One suspect died during the trial.

Prosecutors said the gang trafficked children to countries in Western Europe to beg and steal while controlling their families through a form of debt bondage.

A joint police investigation that began in 2006 led to around 100 convictions in Britain for crimes ranging from trafficking and money laundering to benefit fraud, forging documents and child neglect.

But in Romania, where the alleged leaders of the group were taken to court in 2010, the case was marked by delays. Defendants changed lawyers, many witnesses could not be found to...