enhancing our intelligence and targeting capabilities, including working cooperatively with other agencies and the community
Enhancing our intelligence and targeting capabilities has been a priority for Customs in 2006-07. We have pursued many avenues to achieve this, with a number of successes. The main initiatives under this program of work included:
In a significant first for law enforcement in the Pacific region, Australian Customs and New Zealand Police have come together to assist in the development and provision of ongoing support to a joint Samoa Customs/Police detector dog program. In an effort to combat a growing drug problem in the small Pacific nation, the Samoan government requested the support of both Australia and New Zealand in providing, training, deploying and supporting detector dogs based in the capital of Samoa, Apia.
Samoan Customs and Police agencies will be sharing training
aids, operational environments, taskings and a purpose built
kennel facility designed specifically for Samoa by Australian
Customs.
In May 2007, two new narcotic detector dogs were provided to our Samoan counterparts. One bred and trained by Australian Customs, detector dog 'Quizzy' and one trained by the New Zealand Police, detector dog 'Frodo'.
Officers from Samoa and American Samoa Customs agencies were given specialist handler training in Australia from February to April 2007. Instruction in the safe handling of narcotics was also provided for the Samoan Customs officer responsible for control of training aids for the new program.
The detector dog teams will be undertaking a variety of intelligence-based tasks in Samoa's border and domestic police environments. They have been trained to search people, luggage, cargo and articles at the Apia International airport, shipping port and post office. They also carry out activities in support of general policing duties throughout Samoa.
Andrew Frugtniet, Acting Director Australian Customs Specialist Enforcement Programs, and Brett Matthews, Senior Detector Dog Instructor, travelled to Samoa for the dog handover and commencement of the program. The official handover ceremony on 1 May 2007 was performed by the Prime Minister of Samoa, with the Australian High Commissioner in attendance.
This project highlights Australian Customs commitment to restricting
the movement of illicit drugs in the Asia-Pacific region. It
also emphasises the close cooperation undertaken by Australian
and New Zealand law enforcement programs supporting and strengthening
the region's border security measures. Samoan Customs will be
screening passengers and freight bound for Australia and New
Zealand and working cooperatively with the American Samoa detector
dog program.
Photo (from left): Letitaia Losia, Samoa Customs; Bach
Lene, Samoa Customs with 'Quizzy'; Brett Matthews, Australian
Customs; Andrew Frugtniet, Australian Customs (in his lava lava);
Sergeant Herbert Aati, Samoa Police with 'Frodo'; Inspector
Brendon Gibson, NZ Police.
A COLLABORATIVE LAW ENFORCEMENT APPROACH
The establishment of the Unified Policing Model and subsequent Joint Airport Intelligence Groups (JAIGs) and Joint Airport Investigations Teams (JAITs) was one of the most significant outcomes of the 2005 Wheeler Review, which examined security and law enforcement arrangements at major Australian airports. The Wheeler Review called upon all agencies with a responsibility for aviation security to work cooperatively to identify and address a range of dynamic criminal and security threats.
JAIGs around Australia are the primary means by which the various agencies with a responsibility for aviation security come together. Customs, Australian Federal Police (AFP) and State Police are the full time members of the JAIG. The Australian Crime Commission, Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service, Department of Immigration and Citizenship, Department of Transport and Regional Services and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation are all part time members. Irrespective of membership status, each agency is equally represented by senior officers on the Aviation Intelligence Joint Working Group which provides strategic oversight of all the JAIGs and their activities.
Each of the agencies within the JAIG has resources, expertise, information and legislative powers unique to their operation. JAIG members pool their expertise, resources and legislative powers to develop operational and tactical intelligence to identify security weaknesses and criminal threats. Customs officers within the JAIG use their analytical skills, expertise and contacts within the airport environment to develop strategic and operational intelligence.
Actionable intelligence developed by the JAIGs is used by the other elements of the Unified Policing Model, such as the five JAITs around Australia, to swiftly address identified criminal threats. The JAITs, consisting of AFP, Customs and State Police, undertake intelligence led investigations into serious and organised crime. Officers of each JAIT similarly pool their powers, resources and expertise. Customs officers within the JAITs provide real time tactical intelligence support to AFP and State Police investigators to promptly remove and prosecute criminal entities and threats that may impact upon the security of airports and the safety of air travellers.
Senior officers from Customs Intelligence and Targeting Division attended the Heads of Intelligence (HINT) meeting in March 2007 in Auckland, New Zealand. This regular event comprises border agency intelligence leaders from the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The meeting was an opportunity for Customs to build on exchanges from past years about organisational capacity and intelligence best practice. This year's meeting focused on commissioning joint analytical projects on topics of mutual concern to the represented border agencies. Customs officers agreed to collaborate on strategic risks, such as the operation of criminal networks, the illegal movement of people and goods, counter-terrorism and money laundering with their international counterparts.
The meeting was successful in developing a forward work program for collaborative intelligence analysis between the HINT partners. Through HINT there is also the potential to enhance our intelligence collection capabilities with access to information sources held by partner countries.
