SHARING INTELLIGENCE

Members of the Central American Intelligence Program discuss issues at its inaugural meeting in July.

The members of a new international group formed to help fight the violent MS-13 and 18th Street gangs were meeting for the first time last month at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia when the reason for the group’s existence became perfectly clear: representatives from El Salvador and Mexico realized they had been tracking the activities of the same MS-13 suspect. Now both countries could benefit from their collective intelligence efforts.

“These gangs are transnational, and right now they pretty much cross our borders for criminal activity at will,” said L.T. Chu, an FBI intelligence analyst with our MS-13 National Gang Task Force and the program manager for the new group—the Central American Intelligence Program (CAIP).

The FBI is involved in investigative partnerships to battle transnational gangs, but CAIP, whose members are primarily from Central America, is the first organization to focus exclusively on intelligence.

At the annual Policia Nacional Civil Anti-Gang conference last spring in El Salvador, Chu said, “We determined that one of our weaknesses was exchange of intelligence. We realized that it was crucial that we set up a forum and a mechanism to exchange this information.”

That thinking is very much in keeping with the Bureau’s overall post 9/11 efforts to become a proactive, intelligence-gathering organization that prevents criminal activity rather than responding to crimes after the fact.

A joint initiative of the FBI and the State Department, CAIP consists of veteran criminal intelligence analysts from the U.S., El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, and Canada who work gang-related matters. Besides intelligence sharing, the objective is to standardize reports and other intelligence products and to minimize the communication gaps between countries—gaps that currently allow gang members to operate across borders.

At its first meeting—the group will meet three times a year at rotating host countries—interpreters assisted participants who spoke little English or Spanish. But even with the language barrier, everyone understands the significance of CAIP’s mission.

“Gangs are a huge problem in Guatemala,” said Heber Ramirez, chief of intelligence analysis for Policia Nacional Civil de Guatemala. Through an interpreter he explained, “It is very important that we have established relationships with these countries so that we can track gang activities across borders.” And as CAIP works toward standardizing how intelligence products are produced, he added, “We will be reporting very specific information in very specific ways that everyone can understand.”

Douglas Funes, who heads the transnational gang unit for the Policia Nacional Civil in El Salvador—which includes two embedded FBI agents working gang-related investigations—agreed that CAIP will be a vital weapon in fighting gangs.

El Salvador is “contaminated” by violent gangs, Funes said, and MS-13 alone has some 15,000 members in the country, including many members in the prison population. “Perhaps the most serious problem with MS-13,” he added, “is that they are constantly recruiting new members.”

“MS-13 and 18th Street are developing constantly and changing their methods,” Chu said. “The only way to fight them is to understand their organizations from the top down. And the only way to accomplish that is through cooperative intelligence sharing across borders. That is why CAIP is so important.”

Resources: FBI gangs website

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Police raid Doctor Conrad Murray! NEW 2009

From: Michaeljacksonalive

Los Angeles police and federal drug agents searched the Houston clinic of Michael Jackson's doctor Wednesday, while investigators in California sought more information from him. The police and agen...

Los Angeles police and federal drug agents searched the Houston clinic of Michael Jackson's doctor Wednesday, while investigators in California sought more information from him. The police and agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration were going through Dr. Conrad Murray's clinic in north Houston, Los Angeles Police Detective Dan Myers said. Houston police surrounded the building as the investigators went inside. DEA spokeswoman Violet Szeleczky said about 20 people were in the Armstrong Medical Clinic, including employees. A neighborhood crowd gathered to watch the raid. Murray has emerged as a central figure in the investigation into Jackson's death. The doctor, who had been recently hired by Jackson, was with him in his mansion and tried to revive him. He has been interviewed by police but he has not been considered a suspect. Miranda Sevcik, spokeswoman for Murray's attorney, Ed Chernoff, told The Associated Press that Murray's legal team was surprised by the search. She said the agents were looking for Murray's records, not drugs, but wouldn't specify further. She declined to say how the search related to Jackson's death. Meanwhile, investigators in California are also sought more information from Murray, according to Chernoff. The attorney posted a statement on his law firm's Web site late Tuesday saying investigators from the Los Angeles County coroner's office have asked for medical records in addition to those already provided by Murray. "The coroner wants to clear up the cause of death; we share that goal," Chernoff said in his statement. "Based on Dr. Murray's minute-by-minute and item-by-item description of Michael Jackson's last days, he should not be a target of criminal charges." Although Chernoff has said the doctor didn't give the pop star any drugs that contributed to his death, Murray has nonetheless received attention from those angry over the singer's death. "Dr. Murray was the last doctor standing when Michael Jackson died and it seems all the fury is directed toward him," Chernoff said. "Dr. Murray is frustrated by negative and often erroneous media reports, he has to walk around 24-7 with a bodyguard. He can't operate his practice. He can't go to work because he is harassed no matter where he goes." It's still not known what caused Jackson's death at age 50. The pop star went into cardiac arrest in his bedroom and Murray performed CPR while an ambulance was called, according to Murray's lawyers. An autopsy was conducted but results are not expected until next week. The Jackson family had a second autopsy performed and those results also are pending. Investigators have found the powerful anesthetic propofol in Jackson's home, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation. The person is not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity. The officials are working with the Drug Enforcement Administration and California attorney general's office to determine how the medications got there. Police detectives have already spoken to Murray twice — once immediately after the singer's death and again two days later. Police investigators say Murray is cooperating in their investigation. The Las Vegas-based doctor is also licensed in California, Nevada and Texas. Sevcik, Chernoff's spokeswoman, said the interview with coroner's investigators might happen Friday. Murray is currently in Las Vegas and Chernoff would be speaking to investigators without the doctor being present. There was no sign of activity Wednesday at Murray's medical offices in Las Vegas. Doors were locked and curtains drawn at his practice, Global Cardiovascular Associates. There was no immediate record of a search warrant for Murray's medical office or his Las Vegas home, said Esther McElhaney, a Las Vegas court spokeswoman. But she said police would have 10 days to provide a report to a judge in Las Vegas Justice Court about any items or documents seized if they had searched either location recently. The DEA has assisted in probes into other celebrity deaths, including the 2007 overdose death of Anna Nicole Smith as well as that of actor Heath Ledger. Jean Rosenbluth, a University of Southern California law professor, says the agency's involvement in the Jackson case suggests authorities are looking into whether drugs came from out of state. Federal drug regulations include controls over whether and how frequently a doctor can write prescriptions over the phone, and DEA agents could be looking to see if these rules were broken, Rosenbluth said.

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3 NJ mayors, lawmakers arrested in corruption case

NEWARK, N.J. – The mayors of three New Jersey cities, two state legislators and several rabbis were among more than 40 people arrested Thursday in a sweeping corruption investigation that began as a probe into an international money laundering ring that trafficked in goods as diverse as human organs and fake designer handbags.

Among 44 people arrested Thursday were Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano III, Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell, Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini, state Assemblyman President L. Harvey Smith and state Assemblyman Daniel Van Pelt.

Ridgefield Mayor Anthony Suarez, who is also an attorney, is charged with agreeing to accept an illegal $10,000 cash payment for his legal defense fund.

Gov. Jon Corzine reacted to the corruption probe Thursday morning by saying, "any corruption is unacceptable — anywhere, anytime, by anybody. The scale of corruption we're seeing as this unfolds is simply outrageous and cannot be tolerated."

In separate money laundering complaints, several rabbis from Brooklyn and New Jersey were charged with offenses ranging from the trafficking of kidneys from Israeli donors to laundering proceeds from selling fake Gucci and Prada bags.

Van Pelt is accused of accepting $10,000 from a cooperating government witness posing as a developer who sought help in getting permits for a project in Ocean County.

Smith, the Jersey City Council President, and several other current and former Jersey City public officials also are accused of accepting money to help the fake developer gain permits and approvals.

Beldini, 74, is charged with conspiracy to commit extortion by taking $20,000 in illegal campaign contributions. Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy said Thursday the charges were "a little shocking."

"I have full faith in Leona," Healy said. "She's a good friend of mine — was and will be."

Cammarano, 32, who won a runoff election last month, is charged with accepting $25,000 in cash bribes from an undercover cooperating witness. Elwell is charged with taking $10,000.

Joseph Hayden, an attorney representing Cammarano, said his client "is innocent of these charges. He intends to fight them with all his strength until he proves his innocence."

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the investigation initially focused, with the help of the cooperating witness, on the money laundering network that operated between Brooklyn, Deal, N.J. and Israel. The network is alleged to have laundered tens of millions of dollars through charities controlled by rabbis in New York and New Jersey.

Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said he has heard of the story but knows nothing of kidneys being sold by Israelis.

The investigation widened to include official corruption in July 2007 when the cooperating witness approached public officials in Hudson County posing as a developer seeking to build in the Jersey City area.

Hoboken's waterfront has proven to be an especially lucrative piece of real estate across from midtown Manhattan. Developers have put up dozens of buildings in the last 15 years in the mile-square city. It had a prime view on July 4 of fireworks over the Hudson River.

The fears that the city was being overdeveloped has become a hot topic during elections among candidates.

In secretly recorded conversations outlined in the complaint against Cammarano, the candidate made it clear to prospective campaign donors that he was a friend of developers.

When a cooperating witness posing as a developer who was donating $5,000 to the campaign told Cammarano just days before the mayoral election that he wanted to make sure he had his support with "some properties we're working on," Cammarano is quoted as saying, "I'll be there."

In Deal, Mike Winnick of the Elberon section of Long Branch was praying inside the Deal Synagogue when it was raided by FBI, IRS and Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office agents.

"Everyone was looking at each other, like, `What's going on here?' " he said.

Winnick said four FBI agents escorted a rabbi from the synagogue into his office and blocked the doorway.

Winnick said he left shortly afterward.

Nearby, FBI and IRS agents removed several boxes from the Deal Yeshiva, a school that educates the children of Sephardic Jews.

Busloads carrying those arrested were brought to the FBI's Newark field office Thursday morning. One agent slowly walked an elderly rabbi into the building as another covered his face with a felt hat.

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FBI notes: Saddam Hussein sought familiar refugeFBI notes: Saddam

BAGHDAD – After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Saddam Hussein stayed in Baghdad until he saw "the city was about to fall." Months later, he was caught hiding at the same farm where he had fled in 1959 after taking part in an attempt to kill the country's prime minister.

Unclassified FBI interviews conducted during his incarceration at a U.S. detention center offered new details Thursday about the late Iraqi dictator's life on the run — both before and after he was ousted.

The documents also confirm previous reports that Saddam falsely allowed the world to believe Iraq had weapons of mass destruction — the main U.S. rationale behind the war — because he feared revealing his weakness to Iran, the hostile neighbor he considered a bigger threat than the U.S.

Saddam was captured by American soldiers on Dec. 13, 2003, just over eight months after his regime was toppled by a U.S.-led invasion. An Iraqi tribunal convicted him of crimes against humanity, and he was hanged at the end of 2006.

He said he was never in the neighborhood on the outskirts of Baghdad that was bombed on March 19, 2003, in an attempt to kill the Iraqi leader at the start of the war. The U.S. military had received a tip that he was hiding there.

Saddam made his last public appearance in Azamiyah on April 9, 2003, the day a bronze statue of him was brought down in a central Baghdad square in what became the defining image of his overthrow.

But, he said, he stayed in Baghdad until April 10 or 11 when "it appeared that the city was about to fall." He held a final meeting with leaders from his inner circle and told them, "We will struggle in secret."

Then he fled the capital, gradually shedding his bodyguards along the way to avoid attracting attention, telling them they had fulfilled their duty.

The new details were among more than 100 pages of notes written by George Piro, an FBI special agent who interviewed Saddam after he was found huddling in a so-called "spider hole" on a farm near his hometown of Tikrit, 80 miles north of Baghdad.

The notes of the FBI interviews were made public Wednesday by the National Security Archive, a non-governmental research institute.

Saddam said the farm was the same place he took refuge after participating four decades ago in a failed assassination attempt against then-Prime Minister Abdul-Karim Qassim.

Saddam denied the widespread belief that he used body doubles to avoid detection. "This is movie magic, not reality," he was quoted as saying in the transcript.

Instead, he said, he evaded enemies by using the telephone just twice in more than a decade and constantly moving from one dwelling to another. He communicated mainly through couriers or met personally with officials.

"He was very aware of the United States' significant technological capabilities," the agent wrote in notes after one interview.

In a series of interviews between February and June of 2004, Saddam also told Piro that he falsely allowed the world to believe Iraq had weapons of mass destruction because he feared revealing his weakness to Iran, which Iraq fought in a ruinous, eight-year war in the 1980s that involved the use of chemical weapons.

Saddam denied having unconventional weapons before the U.S. invasion but refused to allow U.N. inspectors to search his country from 1998 until 2002. The inspectors returned to the weapons hunt in November 2002 but still complained that Iraq was not cooperating.

"By God, if I had such weapons, I would have used them in the fight against the United States," he told Piro.

Former President George W. Bush justified the invasion of Iraq in large part on the assertion that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction and could provide them to terrorists. Saddam had used chemical weapons previously, and the Bush administration maintained that he was pursuing biological and nuclear weapons. No such weapons were found after the war.

In the interviews, Saddam dismissed Osama bin Laden as a "zealot" and said he had never personally met the al-Qaida leader. He said the Iraqi government did not cooperate with the terrorist group against the U.S.

The National Security Archive obtained the FBI summaries through a Freedom of Information Act request and posted them on its Web site. The New York Daily News also wrote about the Hussein files last week after obtaining summaries of the interviews through a FOIA request.

Saddam also stated that the United States used the Sept. 11 terrorist attack as a justification to attack Iraq and said the U.S. had "lost sight of the cause of 9/11." He claimed that he denounced the attack in a series of editorials.

Piro had described the discussions with the Iraqi dictator in an interview with CBS's "60 Minutes" last year. Saddam told him he had "miscalculated" Bush's intentions and expected only a limited U.S. attack.

"Hussein stated Iraq could have absorbed another U.S. strike, for he viewed this as less of a threat than exposing themselves to Iran," according to a June 11, 2004, FBI interview report.

He also provided details about the run-up to the 1991 Gulf War following his invasion of Kuwait, reporting that former U.S. Secretary of State James A. Baker III warned Saddam's then-Foreign Minister Tariq Aziz during a January meeting that if Iraq did not comply with American demands "we'll take you back to the pre-industrial stage."

And he took personal responsibility for ordering the launching of Scud missiles against Israeli targets during the 1991 Gulf War, saying he did it because he blamed Israel and its influence in the United States for all Arab problems.

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WORK-AT-HOME SCAMS

WORK-AT-HOME SCAMS Job One: Don't Take the Bait

Everyone’s seen them—seductive work-at-home opportunities hyped in flyers tacked to telephone poles, in newspaper classifieds, in your e-mail, and all over the web, promising you hundreds or thousands of dollars a week for typing, stuffing envelopes, processing medical billing, etc. And it’s just a phone call or mouse click away…

Might be tempting during these uncertain economic times, but beware of any offers that promise easy money for minimum effort—many are scams that fill the coffers of criminals.

Here are a few of the most common work-at-home scams.

• Advance-fee: Starting a home-based business is easy! Just invest a few hundred dollars in inventory, set-up, and training materials, they say. Of course, if and when the materials do come, they are totally worthless…and you’re stuck with the bill.
• Counterfeit check-facilitated "mystery shopper:" You’re sent a hefty check and asked to deposit it into your bank account, then withdraw funds to shop and check out the service of local stores and wire transfer companies. You keep a small amount of the money for your “work,” but then, as instructed, mail or wire the rest to your “employer.” Sound good? One problem: the initial check was phony, and by the time your bank notifies you, your money is long gone and you’re on the hook for the counterfeit check.
• Pyramid schemes: You’re hired as a “distributor” and shell out big bucks for promotional materials and product inventories with little value (like get-rich quick pamphlets). You’re promised money for recruiting more distributors, so you talk friends and family into participating. The scheme grows exponentially but then falls apart—the only ones who make a profit are the criminals who started it.
• Unknowing involvement in criminal activity: Criminals—often located overseas—sometimes use unwitting victims to advance their operations, steal and launder money, and maintain anonymity. For example, they may “hire" you as a U.S.-based agent to receive and re-ship checks, merchandise, and solicitations to other potential victims…without you realizing it’s all a ruse that leaves no trail back to the crooks.

More Scam Stories

- Spear Phishing - Car Cloning - Illegal Online Pharmacies

Add identity theft to the mix. As if these schemes aren’t bad enough, many also lead to identity theft. During the application process, you’re often asked to provide personal information that can be used to steal from your bank account or establish new credit cards in your name.

On the job. A host of law enforcement and regulatory agencies, including the FBI, investigate these schemes and track down those responsible. But the most effective weapon against these fraudsters is you not falling for the scams in the first place.

A few tips:

• Contact the Better Business Bureau to determine the legitimacy of the company.
• Be suspicious when money is required up front for instructions or products.
• Don’t provide personal information when first interacting with your prospective employer.
• Do your own research into legitimate work-at-home opportunities, using the “Work-at-Home Sourcebook” and other resources that may be available at your local library.
• Ask lots of questions of potential employers—legitimate companies will have answers for you!

And if you think you’ve been the victim of a work-at-home scam, file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission’s Consumer Sentinel or our Internet Crime Complaint Center.

>> FBI

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ATF Arrests Million Dollar Cigarette Smugglers In Queens

ATF Arrests Million Dollar Cigarette Smugglers In Queens

Cigarettes Had A Street Value Of Over $3 Million

NY – Ronald B. Turk, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) New York office today announced the arrests of two (2) individuals who purchased untaxed cigarettes from ATF while also selling ATF counterfeit New York State/City Tax Stamps.

Guang Ming Wang, age 58 and his son, Feishan Wang, age 30, both residents of Queens, were arrested by ATF Agents without incident today in Flushing. Guang Ming Wang arrived at a prearranged meet location with $312,000 in cash and over 200,000 counterfeit tax stamps. As the cash and stamps were exchanged for a shipment of 12,000 cigarettes, he was immediately taken into custody. Feishan Wang was arrested at the same time in front of 144-05 29th Road in Queens. Both Wang’s have been involved in this particular illicit operation since June 2008, which included 12 undercover deals involving the purchase of untaxed cigarettes and counterfeit tax stamps.

During the nine month investigation, Guang Ming Wang purchased a total of 31,980 cartons of untaxed cigarettes for $846,000 and also sold ATF 103,950 counterfeit NY State/City tax stamps for $4,000. After the undercover sales of cigarettes, both Wang’s were observed by agents unloading the contraband at two locations, 144-05 29th Road and 135-06 62nd Ave. in Queens. Federal search warrants were executed at both locations after the arrests.

The cartons sold to Wang contained a total of 319,800 individual cigarette packs, which at a price of $10 per pack had a retail street value of more than $3.1 million dollars in New York City. The counterfeit New York tax stamps are worth $4.25 each, bringing their street value to over $440,000. It is estimated that the defendants conspired to deprive New York State and City of at least $1.8 million dollars in tax revenue through their actions.

Mr. Turk said, “In these hard economic times, selling untaxed or counterfeit taxed cigarettes are putting our law abiding merchants at a huge disadvantage. The legal tax revenue collected on tobacco products goes towards improving our school, our highways and our quality of living. The selling of untaxed cigarettes must be closely watched and snuffed out as soon as possible.”

The defendants are initially being charged with conspiracy to violate the Contraband Cigarette Trafficking Act and could face up to 5 years in prison on these charges. Additional charges are expected to be filed by the office of Benton Campbell, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York whose office will be prosecuting the case.

 

Source: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

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INTERNET CRIME: Complaints and Losses on the Rise

Reports of Internet scams and their financial toll continued to grow in 2008, according to the latest data by the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), which operates a website, http://www.ic3.gov/, to collect and refer public complaints about Internet fraud.

In 2008, more than $264 million was lost in 275,284 complaints—an average of $931 for every complaint—according to the 2008 Internet Crime Report, released March 30. Almost one-third of the complaints were for non-delivery of merchandise purchased online; auction fraud accounted for one in four complaints.

In one case cited in the 2008 figures, a Virginia woman—Rachel Trent, who was the subject of multiple complaints in three states—advertised rare baseball and football cards on the eBay auction site. Once a buyer paid, the woman sent a worthless card or sometimes nothing at all. She was arrested by a cyber task force and is serving fours years in prison.

FBI Supervisory Special Agent Charles Pavelites describes the role of the Internet Crime Complaint Center. Play Video

The Internet Crime Complaint Center is a partnership between the FBI and the nonprofit National White Collar Crime Center. IC3 collects the data, analyzes it, and then refers complaints to law enforcement agencies to follow up. The report, issued annually since 2003, offers a snapshot of the most frequent Internet crimes, where they are occurring, and who is being victimized.

In the U.S. last year, California, New York, Florida, Texas, and the District of Columbia were home to half the perpetrators identified in complaints. Worldwide, perpetrators were most commonly from the U.S. (66.1%), followed by the United Kingdom (10.5%), Nigeria (7.5%), and Canada (3.1%).

Here’s a look at the scams prompting the most complaints (by percentage), along with the average amount of money lost per complaint:

• Non-delivery of merchandise/payment: $800 (32.9%)
• Auction fraud: $610 (25.5%)
• Credit/debit card fraud: $223 (9%)
• Confidence fraud: $2,000 (7.9%)
• Computer fraud: $1,000 (6.2%)
• Check fraud: $3,000 (5.4%)
• Nigerian letter fraud: $1,650 (2.8%)

The data is posted in full on the IC3 website.

Year	Complaints	Loss
2008	275,284	$265 million
2007	206,884	$239 million
2006	207,492	$198 million
2005	231,493	$183 million
2004	207,449	$68 million

“This report illustrates that sophisticated computer fraud schemes continue to flourish as financial data migrates to the Internet,” FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director Shawn Henry said in a statement.

The 2008 figures represent a 33% increase in complaints and a $25 million increase in losses over 2007. E-mail and webpages were the two primary mechanisms scammers used to commit their crimes, underscoring the need to be vigilant and cautious online, particularly in transactions. The Internet Crime Report offers prevention tips to avoid online traps. You can also visit our Be Crime Smart page to learn about frauds, scams, and how to file tips and complaints.

Source: FBI

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SENTENCING IN 2001 ECO-TERRORISM ATTEMPT AT MICHIGAN

MARQUETTE, MI—Ian Jacob Wallace, 27, of East Setauket, New York, was sentenced on Monday by U.S. District Judge Robert Holmes Bell to serve three years in Federal prison for his role in the November 5, 2001, attempted fire-bombing of U.S. Forest Service property located on the campus of Michigan Technological University in Houghton, Michigan, U.S. Attorney Donald A. Davis announced today. Wallace, who committed the offense on behalf of the activist environmental group known as the “Earth Liberation Front” or “ELF,” was also ordered to pay over $1.6 million in restitution to the victims of other similar, but successful, acts of arson and property destruction in Western Wisconsin and Minnesota that he participated in between 2000 and 2002.

In targeting Michigan Tech, Wallace and a second ELF adherent, who has since been convicted and sentenced in the District of Oregon, had sought to destroy federally-funded research that was being conducted into genetic modification of plants. Although Wallace could have been sentenced to as much as 10 years in prison, Judge Bell imposed a much lower sentence in recognition of the assistance Wallace provided to the United States in its investigation of other ELF actions; because his actions did not, and were not intended to, physically harm any person; and because he voluntarily abandoned his ELF activities in 2002 and focused on obtaining a doctoral degree.

The case was investigated by the Marquette office of the FBI and the U.S. Forest Service, with assistance from the Michigan State Police, Michigan Technological University Department of Public Safety, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). It was prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hagen W. Frank. Detroit FBI

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FUSION CENTERS: Unifying Intelligence to Protect Americans

In Arizona, after determining the subjects of an international terrorism case were involved in local criminal activity, the case was referred to local law enforcement. In New Mexico, several individuals linked to FBI investigations—including an MS-13 gang member—were identified. In Tennessee, we developed—with our partners—a formal process for collecting, sharing, and analyzing suspicious activity reports, looking for trends and patterns.

These cooperative efforts—and many more like them—have been made possible through the work of intelligence fusion centers around the country. These centers, usually set up by states or major urban areas and run by state or local authorities, are often supported by federal law enforcement, including the FBI.

This week, nearly 2,000 local, state, tribal, and federal representatives working in these centers gathered in Kansas City to continue the process of standardizing fusion center operations. The ultimate goal? To create a network of centers presenting a unified front against terrorism and other national security and criminal threats that put Americans at risk.

Difference Between Fusion Centers & Joint Terrorist Task Forces (JTTFs) Fusion Centers Run by state and local authorities Are state/local-centric Deal with terrorism, criminal, and public safety matters Produce actionable intelligence for dissemination to appropriate law enforcement agencies but do not generally conduct investigations Joint Terrorism Task Forces Sponsored by the FBI Regionally and nationally-focused Deal exclusively with terrorism matters Conduct investigations

Speaking at the Kansas City conference, our Chief Intel Officer Don Van Duyn said that “while we still have work to do to make the information process more seamless,” the FBI is committed to “expanding our interconnectedness” to help combat threats from terrorist and criminal networks.  He also said that during the past year we have rolled out—to all of our 56 field offices—standardized intelligence operations structures, roles, and procedures to enhance our collaboration with our partners.

Although a few were already in existence before 9/11, fusion centers really began to crop up after the attacks when local and federal officials recognized the need to quickly coordinate information-sharing related to terrorism. Their number has been growing ever since. Today, there are some 70 centers around the country—50 state and 20 regional. And some have expanded their focus to include public safety matters and major criminal threats.

Fusion center personnel “fuse” intelligence from participating agencies to create a more comprehensive threat picture, locally and nationally. They don’t just collect information—they integrate new data into existing information, evaluate it to determine its worth, analyze it for links and trends, and disseminate their findings to the appropriate agency in the best position to do something about it.

FBI representation. We currently have 114 FBI employees working in 38 fusion centers—about 36 percent are agents, 61 percent are intelligence analysts, and the rest are in positions such as language and financial analysts. Fourteen of these centers are co-located with an FBI Field Intelligence Group or Joint Terrorism Task Force.

Says Elaine Cummins, our Chief Information Sharing Officer, "Participating in a national network of fusion centers definitely helps us share timely, relevant, and actionable intelligence with our partners—an increasingly important component to our unique national security and law enforcement mission.” 

With fusion centers, everbody wins. State and local law enforcement agencies get access to certain federal databases and the benefit of big-picture terrorism and crime perspectives from their federal partners, along with grant funding, technical assistance, and training. Federal agencies like the FBI gain intelligence from the local level that may fuel terrorism or national security investigations elsewhere in the country or even overseas.

And the public gets to sleep a little easier at night, knowing that their local, state, and federal officials are all working together to keep them safe.

FBI

 

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MAN WHO FORMED TERRORIST GROUP THAT PLOTTED ATTACKS ON MILITARY AND JEWISH FACILITIES SENTENCED TO 16 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON

SANTA ANA, Calif—A former inmate in a California state prison who formed a domestic terrorist group that planned to attack United States military operations, “infidels,” and Israeli and Jewish facilities in the Los Angeles area was sentenced this morning to 16 years in federal prison.

Kevin James, 32, who formed the terrorist group he dubbed Jam’iyyat Ul-Islam Is-Saheeh, or JIS, while in a California state prison, was sentenced by United States District Judge Cormac J. Carney.

In sentencing James, Judge Carney said, “Mr. James was the architect and mastermind of a very serious, very troubling offense.”

“The JIS terrorist group reminds us of the dangers that continue to confront our nation,” said United States Attorney Thomas P. O’Brien. “Both foreign enemies and so-called homegrown terrorists have the desire to stage potentially deadly attacks on American soil. As a result of the outstanding work of the FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force, one imminent threat was identified and disabled.”

Last year, Judge Carney sentenced Levar Washington, who was recruited into JIS while in state prison and subsequently recruited others into the plot, to 22 years in prison. A third man involved in JIS, Gregory Patterson, was sentenced last year to 151 months in prison.

James, Washington and Patterson admitted in court that they conspired “to levy war against the government of the United States through terrorism, and to oppose by force the authority of the United States government.”

The fourth member of JIS named in an indictment—Hammad Samana—has been found unfit to stand trial and is currently receiving care at a federal prison facility.

“Kevin James, the founder of the JIS homegrown terror cell, recruited his co-conspirators from behind prison walls to target Los Angeles for terrorism,” said Salvador Hernandez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI in Los Angeles. “This case reminds us of the evolving terror threat we face, and continues to serve as one of the finest examples of line police officers uncovering a terrorist plot and setting aside jurisdictional boundaries to work with the JTTF.”

Torrance Police Chief John J. Neu said: “This case is a prime example of front-line police officers as front-line prevention of domestic terrorism. This dangerous group was discovered by alert police officers and the teamwork between our regional law enforcement partners met this danger head-on. It is important to understand that there was nothing artificial about this group’s ability to carry-out a mass casualty attack. This case represents the effective collaboration of local, state and federal resources in the region which thwarted a tremendous threat to our citizens. We are very pleased to with today’s sentencing of Kevin James.”

After forming JIS in 1997 while in state prison, James recruited Washington into the organization in late 2004 while both were prisoners at New Folsom Prison. James required Washington swear an oath of loyalty and obedience to James and to JIS. After his release from prison several weeks after taking the JIS oath, Washington recruited Patterson and Samana into JIS and had them swear oaths of allegiance and obedience to JIS. After forming this cell, Washington and Patterson conducted about a dozen armed robberies of gas stations to obtain money for the group’s planned attacks in the Los Angeles area.

Samana researched targets and prepared a document called “Modes of Attack.” The document listed “LAX and Consulate of Zion,” “Military Targets,” “Army Recruiting centers throughout the county,” “Military base in Manhattan Beach” and “Campsite of Zion.”

After Torrance Police investigators linked Washington and Patterson to a gas station robbery, various Jihadist documents were found at a South Los Angeles apartment where they lived. In addition to the “Modes of Attack” document, investigators discovered a document titled “Notoriety Moves,” which contained a James-authored statement to be given to the media after a deadly attack. The proposed press statement reads, in part, “This incident is the first in a series of incidents to come in a plight to defend and propagate traditional Islam in its purity.” The document also warns “sincere Muslims” to avoid a series of targets, including “Those Jewish and non-Jewish supporters of an Israeli state.”

The investigation into the terrorist conspiracy was led by the FBI’s Long Beach Joint Terrorism Task Force, whose participating agencies include the Los Angeles Police Department; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the Torrance Police Department; the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department; the Long Beach Police Department; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the Los Angeles Port Police; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service; the Defense Criminal Investigative Service; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; and the Redondo Beach Police Department.

Substantial assistance during the investigation was provided by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, Bureau of Investigations; the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; the California Department of Justice; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations; and the Department of Defense.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office worked collaboratively with the United States Attorney’s Office during the investigation.

Source: FBI

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MOVE OVER, MAFIA: The New Face of Organized Crime

When you hear the words “organized crime,” the first thing that comes to mind is probably the Mafia and its five major crime families in New York City.

But have you ever heard of the notorious Thief-in-Law Vyacheslav Ivankov, the Solnstsevo organization, the Young Joon Yang gang, or the Black Dragons?

They’re involved in organized crime, too. Individuals associated with foreign-based criminal groups are targeting the U.S. as we speak, and they are a major focus of American law enforcement and a top priority of the FBI’s organized crime busting efforts.

These groups have much in common with their Mafia brethren, beginning with their hunger for power and profit.

But what sets them apart is their reach. While traditional mobsters mostly operate domestically, Eurasian and Asian crime groups are transnational. Some report to an established leadership hierarchy in their native lands while others have fuzzier connections, but all require that we work closely with our law enforcement partners in these regions of the world.

Who they are. Eurasian criminal groups hail from dozens of countries spanning the Baltics, the Balkans, Central/Eastern Europe, Russia, the Caucacus, and Central Asia. Although ethnically-based, they work with other ethnic groups when perpetrating crimes. Asian organized crime includes traditional enterprises like the Chinese Triads, Chinese Tong, and Japanese Boryokudan (a.k.a., Yakuza), as well as more loosely organized groups like the Big Boys Circle, the Asian Boyz Group, and Vietnamese and Korean criminal enterprises.

What they do. Both groups are involved in a range of illegal activities in this country, including drug trafficking, extortion, murder, kidnapping, home invasions, prostitution, illegal gambling, loan sharking, insurance/credit card fraud, stock fraud, and the theft of high-tech components. Chinese groups are also involved in human trafficking—bringing large numbers of Chinese migrants to North America and essentially enslaving them here. One of U.S. law enforcement’s chief concerns: the same criminal infrastructure that smuggles people into the U.S. could also be used to smuggle terrorists.

Investigative strategies. Over the past few decades, U.S. law enforcement has had a great deal of success against the major Mafia families using a full suite of investigative methods. Now, we’re using the same set of tools to combat Eurasian and Asian crime groups, including:

• Intelligence gathering;
• The enterprise theory of investigation, which focuses on the entire criminal group rather than on isolated members; 
• The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO, Act (both the criminal and civil provisions of this law can help dismantle criminal organizations);
• Cooperation, lots of it, with both domestic and global law enforcement partners; and
• Time-tested techniques like undercover operations, court-authorized electronic surveillance, informants and cooperating witnesses, and consensual monitoring.

Investigative accomplishments. Thief-in-Law Vyacheslav Ivankov’s conviction in New York in 1996 represented the FBI’s first major victory against the new wave of Eurasian organized crime entering America. Subsequent successes included Operation “Trojan Horses,” which dismantled a violent New York City Albanian criminal enterprise that had taken traditional racketeering activity away from the established La Cosa Nostra crime families.

And undercover investigations in Newark and Los Angeles uncovered an Asian criminal organization that was smuggling, or attempting to smuggle, nearly every form of contraband imaginable—counterfeit currency, cigarettes, illegal drugs, pharmaceuticals, and weapons—into the United States. FBI 

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Jesus Albino Navarro-Montes Arrested in Mexico

On February 11, 2009, federal officers with Mexico's Agencia Federal de Investigación, in an operation coordinated with the FBI and the United States Marshals Service, arrested Jesus Albino Navarro-Montes near Zihuatanejo, Mexico on a warrant for his provisional arrest pending extradition for U.S. drug charges. He is currently in Mexican custody.

Navarro-Montes is wanted for questioning relating to the San Diego FBI investigation of the January 19, 2008 death of United States Border Patrol Agent Luis Aguilar in Imperial County, California. FBI 

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All in the Family : Spy and His Son Indicted

In a spy case eerily reminiscent of one from more than two decades ago, a federal indictment was unsealed January 29 charging a father and son with conspiracy against the United States.

Harold J. Nicholson—a former CIA employee—and his 24-year-old son Nathaniel were charged in Portland, Oregon with two counts of conspiracy, one count of acting as an agent of a foreign government (in this case, Russia), and four counts of money laundering.

As you might remember, another father and son team—John and Michael Walker—were charged in 1985 with spying for the Soviet Union. (Walker also brought his brother Arthur into the fold.)

The kicker in all this? Harold Nicholson is already in prison, serving a more than 23-year sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Sheridan, Oregon for his 1997 conviction on charges of conspiring to commit espionage for the Russian Federation.

Being behind bars, though, apparently didn’t stop Nicholson—he allegedly continued his attempts at maintaining his relationship with the Russians through his son.

How he did it. According to charges, Harold Nicholson felt he was owed additional payment from his Russian handlers for the classified national defense information he provided them during the 1990s. He may have first attempted to communicate with his handlers through fellow prisoners in the year 2000 by convincing the inmates to have visiting family members or friends mail letters for him. Later on, he was more successful in convincing a soon-to-be-released inmate to mail a package for him.

In addition to wanting his Russian “pension”—as he termed it—for services rendered, Nicholson believed he still had sensitive information that would be of use to his handlers but was afraid the information would soon become stale and worthless.  

Partners in crime. According to a court affidavit, by 2006 Nicholson had turned his focus to his son Nathaniel, communicating with him through the limited means available in prison—letters, telephone calls, and visits—to garner his assistance as a go-between. It worked: beginning in December 2006, Nathaniel took the first of many overseas trips on behalf of his father—the first to Mexico City, where we believe he met with Russian intelligence officials, passed information from his father, and received money.

Over time, Nicholson allegedly instructed his son on how to collect money from the Russians in a covert and secretive manner, how to avoid detection by law enforcement, and how to avoid international currency reporting requirements upon returning to the States with U.S. currency from Russian handlers.

Court documents show that Nathaniel took a series of trips from December 2006 to December 2008 to meet with agents of the Russian Federation in San Francisco; Mexico City, Mexico; Lima, Peru; and Cyprus. He allegedly collected money while on these trips and received additional instructions from his handlers. He then brought the money back to Oregon to disperse to family members…at the direction of his father.

The indictment against the two men also seeks forfeiture of the money given to Nathaniel Nicholson by the Russian Federation, alleged to be the proceeds of his father’s past espionage activities.

Resources:
-Press release
- FBI Counterintelligence website

 

Source FBI 

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MOBSTER ON THE RUN

'Whitey' Bulger Search Continues Overseas
Supervisory Special Agent Richard Teahan, who heads the Bulger Fugitive Task Force in Boston, speaks at the Foreign Press Center. One of the FBI’s most notorious fugitives was in the spotlight yesterday, as a briefing for international media at the State Department offered a global perspective on James “Whitey” Bulger, the Boston crime boss wanted for his role in 19 murders and a host of other offenses. Because Bulger is believed to be living overseas, “the focus of the case has become international,” said Richard Teahan, a Supervisory Special Agent in our Boston office who is in charge of the case. Through international exposure, Teahan said, “We hope to make his world smaller for him.” There is currently a reward of up to $2 million for Bulger, the largest reward we’ve ever offered for any of our U.S. Top Ten fugitives.     The job of catching Bulger—on the run for 14 years—has not been easy, in part because he is a meticulous planner who spent nearly two decades preparing for life as a fugitive. He stashed money all over the world, and he leaves no paper trail, paying only in cash. Based on intelligence, we have a strong picture of Bulger’s personality: He is an avid reader who frequents libraries, an animal lover, and a fitness nut who takes long walks. He is a history buff with a compulsive urge for collecting videotapes and books about World War II and Adolf Hitler. He loves to travel, frequently visiting historic landmarks and museums, and has traveled widely in France, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Canada. He is said to always carry a knife.   Bulger, now 79, is known to disguise himself by dying his hair, wearing a moustache, and donning different types of glasses. He is said to be proud of the three-year stretch he did at Alcatraz (for bank robbery), and, noted Teahan, “he has vowed that he will never, ever go back to prison.” Born and raised in the predominantly Irish-Catholic projects of South Boston, Bulger was involved in serious crimes at an early age, including assault, robbery, and rape. After a stint in the Air Force and at several federal penitentiaries, he joined the Winter Hill Gang, which took over the South Boston crime scene. In addition to the murders he is charged with, he participated in drug trafficking, extortion, and loan-sharking, Teahan said. Bulger’s criminal enterprises over the last several decades may have earned him anywhere from $10 million to $30 million. He also infiltrated government agencies, including the FBI, sowing seeds of public distrust in law enforcement that remain in South Boston to this day. “He left a scar on the community,” Teahan said, that will only be fully healed when he has been captured. Despite the difficulty of the search, we have made some progress in the case. For example, we have discovered two of Bulger’s bank accounts. At Barclay’s Bank in London, we found $75,000 in cash. At another of his accounts in Ireland, we found different types of currencies and rare coins. Our multi-agency task force dedicated solely to finding Bulger (and his companion, Catherine Greig, who is under indictment for harboring a fugitive) continues to gather and analyze intelligence and respond to tips of sightings. The task force is made up of personnel from the FBI, the Massachusetts Department of Correction, and the Massachusetts State Police. “We’re committed to finding him,” Teahan said. “No matter how long it takes.” We need your help. If you have any information on Bulger’s whereabouts, contact your local FBI office or the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

FBI

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BEYOND FINGERPRINTS

Palm prints are taken from the

scene of a diffused roadside bomb in Iraq. Later, an individual entering a New York airport is arrested on an unrelated charge. A full set of prints are taken during the booking process and submitted to our Next Generation Identification (NGI) system. A positive ID connects the man to the roadside bomb.

A ski mask-wearing bank robber leaves with his loot, and witnesses tell police they noticed a red skull tattoo on his hand. A search of NGI’s Interstate Photo System for a red skull tattoo provides a potential candidate list that could ultimately lead to the identification of the bank robber.

Both cases are hypothetical, but in the not-too-distant future these scenarios could really happen…thanks to the ongoing development of the Next Generation Identification system—a logical evolution of our current Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS).

That evolution will include not only enhanced fingerprint capabilities but also other forms of biometric identification like palm prints, iris scans, facial imaging, scars, marks, and tattoos—in one searchable system. 

Next Generation Identification is…
A state-of-the-art identification system that will be “bigger, faster, and better” than IAFIS, says Assistant Director Tom Bush of our Criminal Justice Information Services Division.

“Bigger” because it will increase the capacity of our fingerprint storage plus house multimodal biometrics records like palm prints and iris scans…and still have room to accommodate future biometric technologies (i.e., voice, gait, etc.) as they become available and prove reliable. 

“Faster” because it will speed up response time for high priority criminal ten-print submissions from two hours to about 10 minutes on average. There will also be a special category called the “Repository of Individuals of Special Concern” containing records of known or suspected terrorists, wanted persons, and sexual offender registry names. These records can be quickly searched to help law enforcement in the U.S. and American soldiers in places like Iraq and Afghanistan assess the level of threat during an encounter. 

“Better” because going beyond fingerprints as biometric identifiers will enhance the investigative and identification processes. For example, adding palm prints makes sense: some of the latent prints left behind by criminals at crime scenes are palm prints. NGI is also being developed to be compatible with other U.S. biometric systems and potentially with those of some foreign partners.

Next Generation Identification is not…
A tool to expand the categories of individuals from who the fingerprints and biometric data may be collected, nor will it change existing legal authorities.

It doesn’t threaten individual privacy. As required with any federal system, the FBI is doing Privacy Impact Assessments on what information will be collected, how it will be shared, how it will be accessed, and how the data will be securely stored…all in an effort to protect privacy.

NGI is not strictly an FBI system. It’s a joint effort and is being developed in full collaboration with its primary users—our local, state, and federal partners…in particular the CJIS Advisory Policy Board and the National Crime Prevention Compact Council.

Over the next few years, we’ll be rolling out NGI capabilities incrementally so our partners will have the benefit of each capability as soon as it gets our stamp of approval. Stay tuned for future updates, and visit our new NGI webpage. FBI
 

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FBI Most Wanted Terrorists

Usama Bin Laden	Adam Yahiye Gadahn	Abdelkarim Hussein Mohamed Al-Nasser
Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah	Ayman Al-Zawahiri	Ali Atwa
Anas Al-Liby	Fazul Abdullah Mohammed	Hasan Izz-Al-Din
Ahmed Mohammed Hamed Ali	Jaber A. Elbaneh	Sheikh Ahmed Salim Swedan
Abdul Rahman Yasin	Fahid Mohammed Ally Msalam	Ahmad Ibrahim Al-Mughassil
Ali Saed Bin Ali El-Hoorie	Saif Al-Adel	Ibrahim Salih Mohammed Al-Yacoub
Ramadan Abdullah Mohammad Shallah	Abd Al Aziz Awda	Isnilon Totoni Hapilon
Mohammed Ali Hamadei	Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi

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FBI Seeking

Sexual Exploitation of Children

	Jesus Navarro-Montes California			Unknown Suspect Iowa City, Iowa Vandalism Investigation
	Unknown Suspects Armored Car Robberies Lorton and Fairfax, Virginia			Michael Short - Murder Victim Updates
	Julie Magliulo Murder Victim			Jennifer Short - Murder Victim Updates
	Christy Ann Mirack Murder Victim			Mary Short - Murder Victim Updates
	Unknown Suspects Internet Auction Fraud Los Angeles, California			Jane Doe Murder Victim
	Kaelin Rose Glazier Murder Victim			Unknown Suspects Park Ranger Shooting Abiquiu Dam, New Mexico
	Unknown Suspect Oregon Hoax Pipe Bomb Devices			Unknown Suspect Rape and Murder Philadelphia, Pennsylvania En Espanol
	Tammy J. Zywicki Murder Victim				Alexander Michel Odeh Murder Victim
	Unknown Suspect Los Angeles, California Possible ALF Incendiary Device			Rutland, Vermont Armored Car Robbery
	Unknown Suspects Bank Robbery Tempe, Arizona			Unknown Suspect Sexual assaults Ohio and Pennsylvania
	Sergeant Christopher Reyka Murder Victim				Unknown Suspect Armored Carrier Robbery/Attempted Murder Calumet City, Illinois
	Public Safety Warning San Diego, California				Wilson Edison Black Elk, Jr. Murder Victim
	Lois Schmidt Murder Victim			Jonathan Vetrano Murder Victim
	Murder Victim New Jersey			Victoria "Vicki" Eagleman Murder Victim
	Christina Marie Williams  Murder Victim			Jane Doe New Britain, Connecticut
	Greer, South Carolina Murders/Bank Robbery			Jane Doe  Unidentified Murder Victim
	Jane Doe Murder Victim			Thomas Crane Wales Murder Victim
	Unknown Suspect Yuma, Arizona			Evodio Manilla-Cabrera Smuggling Aliens Phoenix, Arizona
		Ronald Owen Hard Heart Murder Victim		Charles Chia Murder Victim
		Unknown Suspect Kidnapping Dumas, Texas			Unknown Suspect Kidnapping Dumas, Texas
		Adreanna Jackson Suspicious Death		Unknown Suspect Aggravated Sexual Abuse Chinle, Arizona
		Jennifer Chia Murder Victim			Natalee Ann Holloway Oranjestad, Aruba
		North Augusta, South Carolina Murder/Carjacking			Janet Doe Unidentified Murder Victim
		East Coast Jewelry Store Burglaries			Murder and Attempted Murder Investigation Varnado, Louisiana
	Jane Doe Murder Victim				Unknown Suspect Bank Fraud Chicago, Illinois
		Homicide Victim Pascagoula, Mississippi			Homicide Victims McAlester, Oklahoma

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