Latvia’s Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau (KNAB) is facing an acute shortage of operational officers, a problem common across law enforcement agencies, the bureau’s acting chief Ineta Cīrule said in an interview with TV3’s “900 sekundes” programme.
She said that over the past several decades, no higher education institution has trained operational officers, who play a crucial role in uncovering complex cases.
She welcomed the fact that the University of Latvia will train its first several dozen investigators next year.
Speaking about efforts to combat corruption, Cīrule said there is always room for improvement. The State Audit Office is currently conducting an audit to identify ways of improving the bureau’s work, while the University of Latvia will also assess KNAB’s performance. In her view, the findings could serve as guidelines for the next head of the bureau in improving its operations.
At the same time, she stressed that the number of cases initiated by KNAB has not declined and that
the bureau confiscated four million euros in its cases during the first half of the year.
“I would like to refute the claim that there are no results,” she stressed, adding that based on materials submitted by KNAB, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office has opened four proceedings and entrusted their investigation to KNAB. The first results in these cases are expected in the autumn.
She described the Prosecutor General’s Office’s willingness to take over the most complex cases from KNAB as “a good indicator”, adding that KNAB remains involved in investigating these cases.
Asked whether she would run for the position of KNAB chief, Cīrule said she was considering it.
As previously reported, former KNAB chief Jēkabs Straume unexpectedly retired on a service pension in early August, before the end of his term and without providing an explanation. Straume first took office as head of KNAB in June 2017 and was reappointed in 2022 for another five-year term.
The Cabinet of Ministers has announced a competition for the position of KNAB chief, with applications accepted until the 18th of September.
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