“When it comes to economic crime, securing a conviction is not always enough. If we do not recover the assets, we are not returning to society what was stolen from it.” This realisation marked a turning point in the career of Julio Petrucci, a prosecutor at the Attorney General’s Office of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Driven by this mindset and by his desire to keep pace with the way crime operates today, Petrucci decided to enrol in the postgraduate programme “CAS Combating Financial Crime Through Asset Recovery” delivered by the Basel Institute on Governance together with the University of Basel.

In this interview, he tells us about the challenges of his work, the issues demanding greater specialisation and the advice he has for other public servants who, like him, are striving to serve their citizens better.

A prosecutor’s work requires constant adaptation. What motivates your daily work and what challenges do you face?

My main motivation is to try to do good and to help repair what is broken in society when a crime is committed.

In my country, as well as across the region, there are many economic difficulties and high levels of social inequality. Many people who become victims of crime rely on the Public Prosecutor’s Office and other public institutions for support. As a prosecutor, I want to be able to provide these victims with answers and practical tools.

Over time, I began to realise that my initial training was largely focused on crime in traditional, physical settings. However, crime scenes are often digital or have a strong financial component.

That’s when I identified the need to look for new tools to strengthen my investigations. It was through this search that I discovered the Basel Institute on Governance and its educational programmes.

Why did you choose the Basel Institute programme to specialise in asset recovery?

I was particularly interested in the specialised programme on asset recovery for three reasons:

• first, because asset recovery is a highly relevant and rapidly growing field;
• second, because I could not find other advanced courses offering this level of specialisation in countering financial crime;
• and third, because of the international reputation of the Basel Institute on Governance and the University of Basel.

What change in perspective did this training bring to your professional career?

The course marked a before and after in my career.

In Argentina, asset recovery is still a developing field. Historically, we have analysed criminal cases with the aim of securing convictions. However, when it comes to economic crime, securing a conviction is not always enough. If we do not recover the assets, we are not returning to society what was stolen from it.

Throughout the course, I learned not only about the different legal frameworks that exist around the world in this area, but also how to apply them to specific cases. The academic team and the online learning platforms were excellent. All this new knowledge and practical tools are already proving extremely useful in my day-to-day work. They have even contributed to my professional growth in ways that I am not yet able to comment on officially.

This was also my first international experience. I got to meet people from different countries and professional backgrounds, which was very enriching.

You were able to join the programme thanks to a scholarship. What did this support mean to you?

I am a public official in a country facing significant economic challenges. The salaries of public officials like me, both in Argentina and across Latin America, are not particularly high.

In this context, I saw that the Basel Institute offered financial support through the Gretta Fenner Scholarship Fund and decided to apply for it. From the outset, the team was very receptive. After some interviews, I was awarded a partial scholarship thanks to the funds they had raised, which allowed me to take the course.

To donors and benefactors, I would say that their contribution is not just individual support for a student: it is a direct investment in justice systems in our countries. Thanks to their contribution, I now have the tools to investigate complex crimes and recover assets that belong to society.

Why would you recommend this training to other prosecutors or investigators in the region?

When you work in public service, and especially in a role such as that of a prosecutor, it is very difficult to look beyond what you see in your daily work. But crime is changing. In fact, it has already changed, and if we do not adapt, we will not be able to do our jobs effectively or help repair what is broken in society when a crime is committed.

For this reason, I encourage prosecutors and others interested in tackling financial crime to step outside their day-to-day routine and take courses like this.

I highly recommend this programme to them, not only because of its academic quality but also because of the quality and dedication of the Basel Institute team. It was an incredible experience.

Thank you, Julio, for sharing your story and highlighting the impact this postgraduate programme has had on your professional journey.

Julio Petrucci is just one of many talented professionals who have been able to take this course thanks to the Gretta Fenner Scholarship Fund. We are deeply grateful to all those who have generously contributed, and continue to contribute, to this fund, especially the International Academy of Financial Crime Litigators, Bonifassi Avocats, Bennett Jones, ECO Strategic Communications and Kellerhals Carrard.

Learn more

• Discover “Combating Financial Crime Through Asset Recovery”

  Postgraduate programme delivered online in partnership with the University of Basel.

• Contribute to the Gretta Fenner Scholarship Fund

  Help train the next generation of anti-corruption professionals.

• Discover our offer of short online training courses

  Practitioner-led training focused on real-world financial crime challenges.