BONAIRE – Under the direction of the Public Prosecutor’s Office BES, the National Criminal Investigation Department (Rijksrecherche) has for some time been conducting a criminal investigation into official corruption by a customs official of the Tax and Customs Administration of the Caribbean Netherlands.

Within the framework of the investigation, today February 7th, 2022, under the direction of the examining magistrate (RC), and in cooperation with the Caribbean Netherlands Police Force (KPCN), searches were conducted on Bonaire.

It concerns a search in the customs office and a residential home. A 56-year-old customs officer was arrested. During the searches, documents and data carriers were seized in the interests of the investigation. The investigation is still in full swing.

As of August 2020, the Rijksrecherche is permanently present in the Caribbean Netherlands (Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba) with Bonaire as its base.