MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Interpol facial recognition nets Slovak most wanted murder in Buenos Aires

“In less than 48 hours, Interpol's global police cooperation platform helped locate, identify and arrest an international fugitive who had evaded justice for a decade”

Police in Buenos Aires have arrested an internationally wanted murder suspect after his image was identified as a likely match by INTERPOL’s facial recognition unit.

Kristian Danev, a Slovak national aged 33, is wanted internationally by Czech authorities under an INTERPOL Red Notice following a murder ten years ago.

As part of an investigation by police in Argentina, INTERPOL’s National Central Bureau in Buenos Aires submitted images of the suspect to INTERPOL’s General Secretariat headquarters for comparison against records in its facial recognition database.

After the search result came up as a potential match, police in Argentina detained the suspect for further questioning, resulting in the suspect confirming his identity.

“In less than 48 hours, INTERPOL’s global police cooperation platform helped locate, identify and arrest an international fugitive who had evaded justice for a decade,” said Harald Arm, Director of Operational Support and Analysis at INTERPOL.

”This illustrates the fundamental role of INTERPOL’s policing capabilities and forensic data in international police investigations. We need to ensure that vital information moves faster than fugitives,” added Mr Arm.

INTERPOL’s Fugitive Investigative Support unit was supported by its Command and Coordination Centre and its Regional Bureau in Buenos Aires. They worked closely together with the INTERPOL National Central Bureaus in Bratislava, Buenos Aires and Prague to ensure the quick exchange of information on the case.

Authorities in Argentina are now holding Kristian Danev subject to his extradition to the Czech Republic.

INTERPOL launched its facial recognition biometric service in November 2016. It already contains more than 44,000 images from 137 countries. Police forces across the globe use INTERPOL’s facial recognition tool daily to make connections between criminals and crime scenes, identify fugitives and missing persons or to compare mugshots.