The year 2024 ended with another month of substantial economic losses in logistics across the Emea region (Europe, Middle East and Africa). According to figures gathered by the Tapa Emea Intelligence System, December alone saw 430 new cargo theft incidents, 113 of which reported a declared economic loss, amounting to a total of €36,859,299. This represents the second-worst monthly toll of the year, following the €40.2 million recorded in November. During December, the average loss per declared high-value theft stood at €326,188, with a daily average of stolen goods worth €1,189,009. The most significant incident occurred on 19 December in Durban, South Africa, where border police intercepted a shipment of counterfeit goods valued at over €10.2 million. This single event contributed to pushing the average value of the most significant thefts, those exceeding €100,000, beyond the €1 million threshold per case.
Among other notable thefts in December were incidents involving luxury goods, electronic products, fuel and industrial materials. On 20 December, an attack on a vehicle led to the theft of three hundred luxury handbags worth a total of €1 million. Six days later, on 26 December, a temporary employee at a store in Moscow stole merchandise valued at over €577,000. In Jaén, Spain, on 24 December, a distribution centre suffered the theft of sports equipment worth €334,000, while in South Africa on 19 December, an armed attack on an armoured vehicle resulted in a loss of €301,109. In Italy, in Avezzano, a fuel theft amounting to €300,000 was recorded on 20 December, while on 2 December, a warehouse in Isipingo, South Africa, suffered losses of assorted goods worth €206,854. Another major theft targeted a truck parked in an unsupervised area in Saran, France, on 4 December, with an estimated loss of €201,000.
Italy recorded the highest number of high-value thefts, with nine incidents, followed by Germany with seven, South Africa with six, France and Spain with four each, the United Kingdom with two, and single cases in Poland, Romania and Russia. Overall, thefts were reported in 36 countries across the Emea region. Other incidents involving losses between €50,000 and €100,000 included an incident in Bradford, Great Britain, where a semi-trailer carrying food and beverages worth €70,000 was stolen. In Neu Roggentin, Germany, a truck was stolen on 18 December with a similar value, while on 13 December, a truck hijacking in Mooinooi, South Africa, resulted in losses exceeding €62,000. On the same day, in Gudensberg, Germany, a load of copper cables worth €50,000 was stolen.
The most targeted products in December fell into nineteen categories identified by the Tapa Emea Intelligence System. Fuel represented a significant share with 112 recorded incidents, followed by metals with 32 cases, cash with 28, food and beverages with 22, construction materials and tools with 18, stolen vehicles and trailers without cargo with 13, and electronic products with 12. Violence was a factor in 37 of the reported incidents, with criminals in some cases drugging drivers or posing as police officers to intercept vehicles. Despite the alarming situation, law enforcement agencies have achieved some successes. Notably, in Spain, the national police dismantled a criminal organisation responsible for importing nearly two thousand tonnes of counterfeit goods into Europe.
