Interpol

The International Criminal Police Organization Interpol, whose headquarters are located in Lyon, was founded in 1923 in Vienna. The founding members also include Switzerland. A multilateral agreement between 188 national police forces forms the legal basis of Interpol. The organisational structure consists of five organs: the General Assembly, the Executive Committee, the General Secretariat, the National Central Bureaus (NCBs) and the Advisors.

Interpol’s statutes form the basis for its activities. Its aim is to ensure and promote the widest possible mutual assistance between all criminal police authorities within the limits of the laws existing in the member countries and in the spirit of the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The organisation also aims to establish and develop all institutions likely to contribute effectively to the prevention and suppression of ordinary law crimes. It is strictly forbidden for Interpol to undertake any intervention or activities of a political, military, religious or racial character. The Organization’s core functions are to carry out search operations in connection with wanted persons and missing objects, to transmit information and to provide a comprehensive database.

Switzerland’s cooperation with Interpol is regulated under Art. 351ter-sexies of the Swiss Criminal Code (SR 311.0) and under the Ordinance on the National Central Bureau Interpol Switzerland dated 1 December 1986 (SR 351.21). The Federal Office of Police (fedpol) is Switzerland’s designated NCB. Various divisions within fedpol carry out tasks in connection with Interpol, and the office functions as a contact for national and international agencies and as a coordination unit for the prevention and prosecution of crime and in the search for missing persons.