OTTAWA, October 22, 2004 -- Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Anne McLellan, U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft and Minister of Justice and Attorney General Irwin Cotler met today at the eighth annual Canada-U.S. Cross-Border Crime Forum to develop joint solutions to common cross-border crime issues. The Forum, which manages law enforcement elements of the Smart Border Declaration of 2001, brings together senior officials from Canada and the U.S. to discuss issues such as smuggling, organized crime, mass-marketing fraud, cybercrime and terrorism. Minister McLellan, Attorney General Ashcroft and Minister Cotler made a number of announcements at the Forum that help address the cross-border drug trade and firearms trafficking, and improve intelligence-sharing capability. Announcements include: Enhanced joint intelligence capacity at the border. Integrated Border Enforcement Teams (IBETs) are working in 15 regions along the Canada-U.S. border to fight cross-border crime. Canada and U.S. law enforcement intelligence officers from these teams will now be co-located at two locations in Canada and two locations in the United States to share intelligence on a daily basis. The co-located intelligence centres at the Pacific Corridor and Red River IBETs are operational; those at the Central St. Lawrence Valley and Windsor-Detroit IBETs are expected to be up and running by March 2005. Release of the 2004 Border Drug Threat Assessment. The assessment analyzes the two-way movement of illicit drugs across the border, and establishes key facts about cross-border drug trafficking. It also establishes best practices and provides the foundation for future joint enforcement activities. New measures to halt the trafficking of firearms. New agreements will be developed to assist the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to trace stolen guns and match crime scene bullets to a database of evidence collected from other crime scenes. In addition to these announcements, a joint threat assessment on identity theft and a public advisory on "phishing" – a form of online fraud – were also released. These documents fulfill a key commitment of the Forum to work together to alert the public to such dangers, and lay the foundation for better collaboration among Canadian and American law enforcement agencies. "There is no more important relationship for Canada than that which we share with our neighbour to the south," said Minister McLellan. "This week, we strengthened that relationship and our commitment to the security of the longest shared border in the world through important measures to combat cross-border trafficking in firearms and drugs, and enhance our intelligence-sharing capacity. I am proud of the many achievements that have come from this Forum, and look forward to many more success stories in the future." "The United States and Canada have a long history of working together to defend the lives and liberties of all who live within our borders," said Attorney General Ashcroft. "The Cross-Border Crime Forum has played a critical role in ensuring that our common border remains open to law-abiding citizens and free enterprise, but closed to those who attempt to exploit it for criminal purposes." "I want to commend the participants who not only operate in the trenches of domestic crime, but in the trenches of cross-border and international criminality," Minister Cotler said, "and where you not only prosecute crime, but protect human security in the most profound sense of the word." The Canada-U.S. Cross-Border Crime Forum was created in 1997. Participants include law enforcement agencies as well as prosecuting authorities from both countries who have jurisdiction and interests along the border. Further information on the announcements, copies of the joint threat assessments on drugs and identity theft, and the public advisory on phishing can be found at either www.psepc-sppcc.gc.ca or www.usdoj.gov. - 30 - For further information: Alex Swann Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness (613) 991-2863 Blain Rethmeier Senior Public Affairs Specialist Office of the U.S. Attorney General (202) 320-3847 Denise Rudnicki Office of the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada (613) 992-4621 Backgrounders Canada-U.S. Cross-Border Crime Forum Enahancing Cross-Border Intelligence Capacity Cracking Down on the Cross-Border Drug Trade Combatting Cross-Border Firearms Trafficking Alerting the Public to Common Threats The Canada-U.S. Cross-Border Crime Forum In 1997, the Prime Minister of Canada and the President of the United States created the Canada-U.S. Cross Border Crime Forum (CBCF) to address transnational crime issues. The Forum held its first meeting in Ottawa in 1997, and was co-chaired by the former Solicitor General of Canada and U.S. Attorney General. It has met eight times since its creation. Originally developed to tackle smuggling activities in the eastern regions of both countries, the Forum has evolved over the years to address other important cross-border crime issues and to include the participation of a wider number of agencies from each country. As a result, it has improved cooperation and information sharing between Canada and the U.S. and has been showcased as a model for cross-border law enforcement collaboration by other organizations, including the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Organization of American States (OAS). Various CBCF working groups meet on an ongoing basis to develop joint strategies and initiatives – including bi-national threat assessments and collaborative operations – on the following issues: mass marketing fraud, counter-terrorism, border enforcement, prosecutions, firearms trafficking, drugs, organized crime and interoperability. Canadian participants U.S. participants Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada Justice Canada Royal Canadian Mounted Police Criminal Intelligence Service Canada Canada Border Services Agency Canada Firearms Centre Transport Canada Citizenship and Immigration Canada Foreign Affairs Canada Financial Transactions Reporting and Analysis Centre Justice Department U.S. Attorneys' offices Federal Bureau of Investigation Drug Enforcement Administration Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Department of Homeland Security: Customs and Border Protection - Border Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and U.S. Coast Guard U.S. Postal Inspection Service Department of State Office of National Drug Control Enahancing Cross-Border Intelligence Capacity Integrated Border Enforcement Teams (IBETs), first established in 1996, help protect Canada and the United States from potential threats of terrorism, and impede cross-border smuggling by land, air or water. IBETs are designed to enhance border integrity and security at our shared border by identifying, investigating and interdicting persons and organizations that pose a threat to national security, or who are engaged in other organized criminal activity. On October 22, 2004, Canadian and American authorities announced the creation of four co-located intelligence sites, with two sites in each country. Dedicated intelligence staff from both countries will be housed at all four locations in order to provide timely information to other IBETs, as well as other enforcement teams and federal agencies. This is an important evolution that will enable IBETs to be more proactive and intelligence-led in their operations, thereby enhancing law enforcement's capability to keep our borders open to legitimate trade and travel, but closed to criminals and terrorists. It also builds on the continuing growth of IBET regions along the shared Canada-U.S. border, as demonstrated by the announcement last week by Minister McLellan and U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge of a 15th IBET region in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The IBET model emphasizes a harmonized approach to target cross-border criminal activity, in which police and law enforcement agencies from both sides of the border work in partnership with local, state and provincial partners. Key players involved in IBET operations include Customs Border Protection – Border Patrol (CBP-BP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Coast Guard, Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). To further enhance collaboration, ICE, CBP-BP and CBSA have assigned full-time personnel to the IBET office at the RCMP headquarters in Ottawa. Since their inception, IBETs have effectively disrupted smuggling rings and confiscated illegal drugs, weapons, liquor, tobacco and vehicles, resulting in numerous arrests. IBETs have also intercepted criminal networks attempting to smuggle illegal migrants across the border and have provided valuable intelligence to national security investigations. Cracking Down on the Cross-Border Drug Trade Today, at the eighth Cross-Border Crime Forum, Canadian and American authorities released the 2004 Border Drug Threat Assessment. The report confirms the two-way nature of the drug trade, and underlines the two countries' mutual concerns with respect to the smuggling of marijuana, cocaine, precursor chemicals and other illicit substances. This document updates the 2001 United States-Canada Border Drug Threat Assessment, and highlights the significant progress that has been made in law enforcement cooperation by outlining a number of successful joint operations. One of these is Operation Candy Box / Project Okapi / Project Codi, which was executed on March 31, 2004. It was the largest single binational enforcement action ever taken against MDMA (Ecstasy) traffickers. The two-year investigation led to the dismantling of a criminal network operating in both Canada and the U.S. that was producing Ecstasy and marijuana in Canada, distributing these drugs in the United States, and laundering illicit funds through Canada and Vietnam. Law enforcement officials from both countries arrested more than 130 individuals in 19 cities, and seized over 877,000 MDMA pills, 120 kilograms of MDMA powder, and $6 million. While the two countries may explore different domestic approaches to managing drug issues, Canada and the United States recognize that they ultimately share the same objectives: to reduce the supply and consumption of illicit drugs, and the serious consequences that they pose to our societies, our citizens, and particularly, our youth. As a result, Canada and the United States are united in their resolve to work together more closely toward these very important goals. Through data- and intelligence-sharing exercises such as the 2004 Border Drug Threat Assessment, Canada and the U.S. can better focus their efforts to build upon successes to date and better respond to this mutual problem. Combatting Cross-Border Firearms Trafficking Both Canada and the United States are committed to stopping the cross-border flow of crime guns. To this end, authorities announced their intention to sign joint agreements to combat this shared problem, through better firearms tracing and an enhanced capability to identify bullets from crime scenes. Firearms Tracing A joint agreement is being concluded between the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to help law enforcement officials trace firearms that are confiscated at crime scenes. The agreement will bring together Canada's National Police Services – managed by the RCMP – and the American ATF centralized tracing unit so the two agencies can better exchange information about crime guns. A new web-based software that has been developed in the U.S. will facilitate this process, making it easier and faster for law enforcement on both sides of the border, to trace firearms used in the commission of a crime. This new arrangement will use Canadian Firearms Program information in continuing support for law enforcement. Ballistics Identification On October 22, 2004, officials announced that an agreement is being concluded between the ATF and the RCMP to better exchange information between Canadian and American ballistics information networks. The Integrated Ballistics Identification System (IBIS) technology, used by both Canada and the U.S., collects images of bullets and cartridge cases recovered from crime scenes and from test fires of firearms. IBIS detects minute details on both spent bullets and used cartridge cases, which are then compared against an inventory of similar images. The RCMP's Forensic Laboratory Services has developed the Canadian Integrated Ballistics Identification Network (CIBIN), a national network that collects firearm information from IBIS across the country. The U.S. has over 230 independent IBIS terminals in most states that are collectively known as the National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN). Under this agreement, analysts in Canada and the U.S. will have timely access to a database of ballistic information, which they can access using the same technology. Canadian and American law enforcement agencies will be able to tap into a wealth of North American ballistics information, making it faster and easier for them to investigate gun crimes. Alerting the Public to Common Threats As a result of recent advances in technology, identity theft is on the rise in Canada and around the world. Identity theft involves stealing, misrepresenting or hijacking the identity of another person or business – typically for economic gain. The perpetrators of identity theft include members of organized criminal groups or networks, terrorists, and individual criminals. The identity thief can take over the victim's financial accounts, transfer bank balances and make unauthorized purchases. Identity Theft Threat Assessment The identity theft threat assessment is the product of the Canada-U.S Working Group on Cross-Border Mass-Marketing Fraud, and was prepared jointly by the United States Department of Justice (DoJ) and Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada (PSEPC). It outlines the nature, scope and impact of identity theft. The assessment also includes trends, statistics and an examination of the factors surrounding identity theft to increase understanding of the nature of the crime. It concludes by describing current and potential responses to the problem. Public Advisory on "Phishing" "Phishing" means the creation and use of e-mails and web sites that are designed to look like those of legitimate businesses, financial institutions and government agencies. At first glance, phishing e-mails and phony web sites may appear completely legitimate. What Internet users may not realize is that criminals can easily copy logos and other information from the websites of legitimate businesses. Most phishing e-mails include false statements intended to create the impression that there is an immediate threat or risk to the bank, credit card or financial account of the person who receives that e-mail. Criminals then deceive Internet users into disclosing their bank and financial account information or other personal data such as user names and passwords. The public advisory on phishing was produced to tell Internet users about the risks of responding to these phony e-mails and web sites, and describes the significant increase in the use of phishing over the past 18 months in North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific Region. The advisory also outlines the steps that potential victims should take to report incidents to law enforcement.
