The Police Corps of Andorra ( ca, Cos de Policia d’Andorra) is the national

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

Andorra , image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg , symbol_type = Coat of arms , national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...

. In 2007, the force had 240 officers serving a population of approximately 85,000.

Structure

The police force consists of the Directorate of the Police, four divisions which carry out the various missions of the police, and two "functional groups".

Directorate of the Police

The Directorate of the Police is composed of a director, a deputy director who has the grade of police commissioner, a secretary, a planning and human resources officer and an administrative assistant. It directs police activities throughout the country. Its members are nominated by the

Government of Andorra The politics of Andorra take place in a framework of a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, and a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government, with the Head of Government of Andorra as chief executive. Legislative power i ...

based on proposals from the

Ministry of the Interior An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

. The International Police Cooperation Office is part of the Directorate of Police, inside is the National Central Office of

Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...

Divisions

There are four Divisions with the following responsibilities: *The Division of Criminal Police (similar to

Kriminalpolizei ''Kriminalpolizei'' (, "criminal police") is the standard term for the criminal investigation agency within the police forces of Germany, Austria, and the German-speaking cantons of Switzerland. In Nazi Germany, the Kripo was the criminal polic ...

) is in charge of

criminal investigation Criminal investigation is an applied science that involves the study of facts that are then used to inform criminal trials. A complete criminal investigation can include searching, interviews, interrogations, evidence collection and preservatio ...

s and divided into two investigation units. The first one, responsible for investigations aimed both at prevention and repression of crime, has sections dealing with

drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

organised crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

, general affairs, juveniles, and

money laundering Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...

. The second investigates crimes brought to its attention and is also responsible for cases of

climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologic ...

accidents. *The Division of Public Security and Proximity comprises two uniformed units whose role is to ensure the overall safety and security of residents. The "Unit for Citizens' Security" is a proximity police intended to prevent offences and maintaining public order. The "Unit for Citizens' Awareness," a detachment of the central police, operates the Information Room, answers public queries, coordinates external services and supervises detention conditions. *The Division of Police Support is responsible for operational support to the other divisions, as well as to the Directorate. It comprises six departments: analysis of criminal information; legal matters; information technology; training; prevention and social orientation; and management. *The Division of Transit and Borders comprises two uniformed units: the Traffic Unit (similar to

highway patrol A highway patrol, or state patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is prima ...

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

patrols to supervise the movement of vehicles at the national

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...

s and intervene in case of accidents) and the Borders Unit (a

border guard A border guard of a country is a national security agency that performs border security. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard (as in Federal Police (Germany), Germany, Guardia di Finanza, Italy or State Border Gua ...

in charge of border immigration control) that works in co-operation with the Department of Immigration.

Groups

Six groups – for the protection of VIPs,

bomb disposal Bomb disposal is an explosives engineering profession using the process by which hazardous Explosive device, explosive devices are rendered safe. ''Bomb disposal'' is an all-encompassing term to describe the separate, but interrelated functi ...

, order maintenance, emergency situations, sniffer-dog training and mountain rescue – are formed by members of the four Divisions; are assembled in response to specific needs; and are assisted by colleagues from neighbouring countries, particularly in organising joint training programmes.

Equipment

The Police Corps of Andorra is the more armed tactical team and they are referred as, Grup d'Intervencio Policia d'Andorra (GIPA) they are more armed than the average officer, these are some of the weapons they are issued: *

SIG Pro The SIG Pro is a series of semi-automatic pistols developed by SIG Sauer in Exeter, New Hampshire. It became the first polymer-frame handgun from SIG Sauer and one of the first pistols to feature a built-in universal accessory rail and intercha ...

- standard sidearm, similar to the one's carried by their French counterparts in law enforcement. *

Heckler & Koch MP5 The Heckler & Koch MP5 (german: Maschinenpistole 5) is a 9x19mm Parabellum submachine gun, developed in the 1960s by a team of engineers from the German small arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch. There are over 100 variants and clones of the MP5, ...

(standard issue) *

Benelli M4 The Benelli M4 is a semi-automatic shotgun produced by Italian firearm manufacturer Benelli Armi SpA, and the last of the "Benelli Super 90" series of semi-automatic shotguns. The M4 uses a proprietary action design called the "auto-regulating gas ...

(standard issue shotgun)

Police ground vehicles

Fiat Panda The Fiat Panda is a city car manufactured and marketed by Fiat since 1980, currently in its third generation. The first generation Panda (Mk 1: 1980–1986 & Mk2: 1986–2003), introduced in 1980, was a two-box, three-door hatchback designed b ...

SEAT Altea The SEAT Altea is an automobile produced by the Spanish automaker SEAT from 2004 to 2015 being previewed by the Salsa Emoción concept. As a compact multi-purpose vehicle (MPV), the car was designed by the Italian Walter de Silva, and was launc ...

SEAT León The SEAT León (), also spelled Leon in some other languages (named after the city of León, which also means "Lion" in Spanish), is a hatchback compact car built by the Spanish car manufacturer SEAT since October 1999.ETKA The first two León ...

Škoda Superb The Škoda Superb is a large family car that has been produced by the Czech car manufacturer Škoda Auto since 2001. The first generation of the modern Superb, produced from 2001 to 2008, was based on the VW B5 PL45+ platform. The second gener ...

Renault Laguna The Renault Laguna is a large family car that was manufactured and marketed by Renault for 21 years in three body styles: hatchback, coupé, and estate. The first generation Laguna was launched in 1994, the second generation was introduced in 200 ...

Ranks

Functions

Grades

References

External links

Police Service of Andorra
Law enforcement in Andorra National police forces National Central Bureaus of Interpol {{Andorra-stub