Europol Creates Operational Taskforce to Tackle Violence-as-a-Service

In response to the concerning rise of “violence-as-a-service” (VaaS) and the exploitation of youth by organized crime, Europol has announced the formation of a new Operational Task Force (OTF), codenamed GRIMM. 

This multinational initiative, led by Sweden, brings together law enforcement agencies from Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Norway. Europol provides operational support, threat analysis, and coordination.

New Face of Organized Crime: Violence-as-a-Service

“Violence-as-a-service represents a dangerous evolution in organized crime tactics,” said Catherine De Bolle, Executive Director of Europol. 

“Criminal networks are deliberately targeting vulnerable young people to carry out violent acts while insulating themselves from prosecution.”

According to Europol intelligence briefings, organized crime groups now recruit minors across Europe to exploit them as low-level workers who carry out serious crimes, including drug trafficking, extortion, and even contract killings. 

This recruitment has become increasingly sophisticated, with criminal networks offering payments as high as €20,000 for killings while employing digital strategies to maintain distance from these activities.

The recently published EU-SOCTA 2025 (European Union Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment) report highlights this trend as part of what Europol describes as “the changing DNA of serious and organised crime”. 

The report indicates that minors are now involved in more than 70% of European criminal markets.

Europol’s Taskforce to Combat Violence-as-a-Service

OTF GRIMM will focus on four strategic objectives:

• Coordinate cross-border intelligence sharing and joint investigations
• Map recruitment methodologies and monetization strategies employed by criminal networks
• Identify and dismantle violence-as-a-service provider networks
• Engage with technology companies to detect and prevent online recruitment

Investigations reveal that young perpetrators are being systematically recruited through social media platforms and encrypted messaging apps using sophisticated techniques, including coded language, gaming mechanics, and the glamorization of criminal lifestyles. 

By targeting minors, criminal organizations create multiple layers of insulation between high-level operators and actual criminal acts.

“This isn’t random criminality-it’s a calculated business model,” explained the head of Europol’s European Serious and Organised Crime Centre. 

“These networks deliberately exploit legal protections for minors and their technical naivety to shield their operations from law enforcement.”

The trend reflects broader shifts in organized crime identified in Europol’s strategic analysis. Criminals now operate more like service providers, offering violence-on-demand to other criminal enterprises while maintaining operational security through youth recruitment.

OTF GRIMM builds on previous Europol initiatives targeting organized crime and represents a more focused response to the specific threat of youth exploitation in violent criminal activities.

Law enforcement agencies across Europe have already begun coordinated actions under the taskforce framework, with initial operations targeting digital recruitment channels and known facilitators of violence-as-a-service networks.

The public is encouraged to report suspicious online recruitment activities to national law enforcement authorities.

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