Colombian authorities said that they have opened an investigation into the possible involvement of government officials in contract irregularities linked to the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Peruvian PresidentMartin Vizcarra said last week that acts of corruption committed during the state of national emergency prompted by the coronavirus pandemic will be punished “in an exemplary way.”

Hundreds of COVID-19-related scams, many of which operated from websites that advertised fake vaccines and cures, operated fraudulent charity drives, delivered malware, or hosted various other types of scams, have been disrupted by US law enforcement, theDepartment of Justicesaid on Wednesday. 

An oversight committee of the Israeli parliament suspended on Wednesday a decision that was allowing police to use cellphone data to track the movement of coronavirus infected people as part of the country’s efforts to enforce the lockdown.

Japan’s government has been criticized for its slow and inadequate response to the outbreak of the coronavirus. Japanese organized crime, meanwhile, has moved to take advantage of the crisis.

TheCouncil of Europe’s anti-graft body warned on Tuesday that the outbreak of COVID-19 “increases corruption risks,” and issuedguidelines for its 50 member states where to expect fraud, bribery or conflicts of interest.

In an aggressive advertising campaign, a Malta-based company sent more than a billion emails offering customers face masks with a three-year-long warranty for at least US$49.99 for two pieces.

In a crisis, there’s no time for bureaucracy. But the special expedited procedures now being used by European governments to buy medical supplies have raised serious transparency concerns — and dodgy purchases are already multiplying.

Long-time rivals Benjamin Netanyahu and Benny Gantz signed on Monday a power-sharing deal that allows them to form a new emergency government, ending Israel’s year-long political deadlock but also giving Netanyahu, indicted in three corruption cases, the right to veto the appointment of a new state prosecutor and attorney general.

The Danish government announced on Saturday that none of its US$58 billion in coronavirus aid would be issued to companies that register in tax havens, pay out dividends, or buy back their own shares. 

Jordanian military intelligence summoned on Sunday a columnist for a “talk” after he published a piece claiming the country won’t be able to pay public servants in May, sources told OCCRP.

Authorities in the Czech Republic have issued guidance on emergency cybersecurity measures as the country steels itself for a sophisticated attack on its communication and information systems, including those used in hospitals.

A shipment of medical supplies from the United Arab Emirates for Bulgaria’s fight against coronavirus consisted mostly of dried dates, OCCRP’s member center in Bulgaria, Bivol, has revealed.

With coronavirus cramping the usual activities of gangsters, organized crime is increasingly going online, experts said on Thursday, following the bust of a group attempting to sell millions of non-existent masks to German health authorities.

In a bid to stop COVID-19 from spreading through its prisons, Turkey plans to release tens of thousands of criminals including gangsters and attempted murderers – but no journalists or political prisoners will be freed, according to activists who condemned the move on Thursday.

In an controversial set of moves, the Jordanian military released on Sunday two executives of a private TV station who were arrested three days earlier for broadcasting a report about people who are suffering financial difficulties due to the country’s coronavirus lockdown.

As US authorities and manufacturers reveal cases of fraud and price gouging within the booming face mask industry, some bring to light greater problems than just the scams themselves. 

Iraqi authorities have suspended on Tuesday the licence ofReuters, one of the world’s leading news agencies, after it published earlier this month a story alleging that the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country was higher than officially reported.

A Romanian national healthcare supplier bought a million masks of questionable quality from a convicted organized crime associate with political ties.

Ukraine’s capital Kyiv canceled a deal for 400 thermal imaging cameras after OCCRP member center Slidstvo found the supplier was unlawfully awarded a US$2.2 million contract.