6 April 2016
Visit of Czech Republic Police President
Brigadier General Tomáš Tuhý, Police President of the Czech Republic met with INTERPOL Secretary General Jürgen Stock at the world police body’s General Secretariat headquarters ahead of the 44th INTERPOL European Regional Conference to be held in Prague in May.
Since expanding access to I-24/7 beyond the INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB) in Prague, including to border control posts and airports, the number of searches conducted by the Czech Police of INTERPOL’s Stolen and Lost Travel Documents database has nearly doubled in less than a year.
Brigadier General Tuhý said the Czech Republic strongly supports and will continue to work closely with INTERPOL particularly in the face of today’s crime threats which are not just European, but global in nature.
The Czech Republic is also a highly active member of the Millennium Project targeting transnational Eurasian organized crime with “Thieves in Law” (the highest level in the criminal hierarchy) a priority area of investigation.
During his visit, Brigadier General Tuhý was accompanied by Colonel Marian Paštinský, Deputy Director of the of Police President‘s Office, Colonel Šárka Havránková, Head of Division of International Police Cooperation and Colonel Miroslav Tichák, Head of NCB Prague.
4 April 2016
Visit of ITU Secretary General
Houlin Zhao, Secretary General, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), visited INTERPOL’s General Secretariat headquarters where he met with Secretary General Jürgen Stock to discuss the importance of collaboration in the area of Internet governance.
Both INTERPOL and ITU are partner organizations to the World Economic Forum project ‘Future of the Internet’.
During the visit, Mr Zhao, who was accompanied by Luc Dandurand , Head, ICT Applications and Cybersecurity Division, ITU, was briefed on INTERPOL’s range of initiatives on cyber security and child online exploitation, and on connecting the world’s law enforcement agencies to INTERPOL’s global communications system.
Head of French Police talks terrorism with INTERPOL Chief during visit
LYON, France – Director General of the French National Police, Jean-Marc Falcone, has met with INTERPOL Secretary General Jürgen Stock to address the global threat of foreign terrorist fighters and the need for increased information exchange.
Secretary General Stock and Director General Falcone – who was accompanied by Mireille Ballestrazzi, Central Director of the French Judicial Police and President of INTERPOL – discussed how INTERPOL and France can further collaborate on national, regional and global counter-terrorism initiatives.
After terrorist attacks rocked Paris in January and November 2015, the French authorities made full use of INTERPOL’s global policing capabilities and tools to assist their investigations.
“I am pleased with the discussions held during today’s meeting, strengthening the close ties between the French police and INTERPOL in the face of the challenges posed by terrorism and organized crime,” said Mr Falcone.
Calling France ‘a model partner’ on exchanging information through INTERPOL channels, Secretary General Stock highlighted how France is one of the top countries sharing data with INTERPOL’s Foreign Terrorist Fighters database, which currently contains information on some 5,500 individuals.
“The movement of foreign terrorist fighters poses one of the greatest security challenges to the safety of citizens worldwide.
“Timely and complete information sharing amongst law enforcement internationally is the only way to detect and prevent the movement of dangerous terrorists, and I applaud the French authorities for making this a key priority in their counter-terrorism activities,” said the INTERPOL Chief.
In addition, Mr Stock noted how France has taken an active role in combating terrorism worldwide, pointing to the country’s involvement in counter-terrorism operations in the Sahel region of Africa.
Also discussed during the visit was the need for more effective coordination between INTERPOL and Europol to reduce existing gaps in information sharing among European and non-European countries.
Financial crime focus of Doha conference
DOHA, Qatar – Shaping a global response to crime risks associated with commerce undetected by government was the aim of a conference in Doha.
Co-hosted by Qatar and INTERPOL’s Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes Sub-Directorate, the four-day conference (3 – 6 April) focused on the latest organized crime trends such as the use of virtual currency in money laundering and payment card fraud, as well as high frequency trade, asset recovery, and information security.
More than 500 participants from 71 countries drawn from law enforcement and the private sector – including the banking industry and internet security – reviewed detailed case studies and investigations.
The conference was opened by Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani. Additionally, high level ministers from the Qatari government – including Staff Major General, Saad Jassim Al Khulaifi, Director General of Public Security – and police chiefs from Gulf countries also attended the event.
“Through the partnership between INTERPOL and Qatar’s Ministry of Interior, this unique event has provided a platform to focus on enhancing investigative methodologies on underground commerce and financial crimes. It will greatly reinforce our current capability, complement our ongoing training efforts and strengthen our investigative support to member countries,” said INTERPOL’s Executive Director of Police Services, Tim Morris.
The audience heard that INTERPOL will continue its efforts in this area in 2016 following the success and effectiveness of targeted enforcement operations in the Asia-Pacific region such as Operation First Light (to combat social engineering fraud), Operation Aces (targeting illegal online gambling centers), and its Global Airport Action Days Operation, undertaken in close cooperation with Europol to combat payment card fraud.
Following a meeting with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani on the sidelines of the conference, Mr Morris said:
“INTERPOL acknowledged the strong support received from the government of Qatar and its strong contribution to global security and the establishment of the INTERPOL Global Complex for Innovation in Singapore.”
“We also reaffirmed our continued collaboration on Project Stadia and the mutual benefits to all parties of the continued high caliber secondments from the Qatari Police,” added INTERPOL’s Executive Director of Police Services.
Established by INTERPOL and funded by Qatar, Project Stadia aims to create a good practice platform to help INTERPOL member countries in planning and executing physical security and cybersecurity preparations for major sporting events.
Source: INTERPOL
By
Robert Williams
Editor in Chief
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