ICE hosts Cross Border Financial Investigations Training
In a joint effort with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) recently hosted a 10-day Cross Border Financial Investigations Training (CBFIT) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
From March 16-27, HSI officials provided specialized training, technical assistance and best practices to approximately 30 law enforcement officials from the Tanzania Revenue Authority, National Police Force and Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau. As part of its continued efforts to combat and prevent money laundering and terrorist financing, HSI led the first five days of training, with representatives from the IRS leading the second week. The training covered topics ranging from movement and smuggling of bulk currency to interview techniques and post-seizure analysis. The objective is to identify potential vulnerabilities and loopholes in countries such as Tanzania that transnational criminal organizations may exploit.
“The laws are in place, however, we are providing best practices we have learned to enhance the Tanzanian authorities’ ability to enforce the law,” said HSI Nairobi Assistant Attaché Hillary Hodge. “We have learned that a shared experience in combating financial transnational crimes builds knowledge to properly investigate these crimes, thus lessens disadvantages. That’s where our training comes in.”
CBFIT provides instruction from HSI representatives who have extensive experience in financial investigations, which benefits the host government and allows ICE to get its name out, engage and show its value to law enforcement counterparts around Tanzania.
HSI International Operations Manager Glenn DeMar was one of six instructors from HSI in Tanzania for CBFIT. In charge of sessions covering tracing of funds and follow-up investigative techniques, DeMar recalls that attendees were enthusiastic and excited about what they had learned. “On the last day, we asked the groups to apply what we taught them and they were able to properly identify structuring issues, reporting requirements and bank violations,” said DeMar. “It was really rewarding to see how much they learned in a short amount of time.”
According to DeMar, during these trainings, the goal is not only for attendees to learn the concepts, but also for them to develop a network among themselves to effectively use team work in investigating financial crimes.
As part of the CBFIT, which is funded by the Department of State, following the training, a representative from HSI will be assigned to do a follow-up on the training and serve as an advisor to Tanzanian officials as they encounter real-world cases. HSI recognizes that financial crime is a global phenomenon and developing partnerships with other nations such as Tanzania is essential to identifying criminal associations and detecting issues before they can be exploited.
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