Ocdetf

Encyclopedia : O : OC : OCD : Ocdetf

Overview

The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) is a federal drug enforcement program that focuses attention and resources on the disruption and dismantling of major drug trafficking organizations. OCDETF provides a framework for federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to work together to target well-established and complex organizations that direct, finance, or engage in illegal narcotics trafficking and related crimes. (Related crimes include money laundering and tax violations, public corruption, illegal immigration, weapons violations, and violent crimes.) The program has been in existence since 1982 and operates under the guidance and oversight of the Attorney General. Utilizing its resources and expertise of its 11 member federal agencies, along with support from its state and local law enforcement partners, OCDETF has contributed to the successful prosecution and conviction of more than 44,000 members of criminal organizations and resulted in the seizure of cash and property assets totaling more than $3.0 billion.

The Executive Office for OCDETF supports the work of over 2,500 federal agents and prosecutors and approximately 6,000 state and local law enforcement officers who participate in OCDETF cases. The Executive Office, in conjunction with a council of Washington Agency Representatives, provides policy guidance and coordination; administrative management and support; collection and reporting of statistical information; and budgetary planning, coordination, and disbursement.

The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) are the United States' primary weapons against the highest level drug trafficking organizations operating within the United States, importing drugs into the United States, or laundering the proceeds of drug trafficking. OCDETF Assistants, working with a variety of federal inveestigative agencies and seputize state and local officers, use the most powerful investigative tools, including court-authorized wiretaps, confidential sources, and undercover operations, to attack these organizations.

OCDETF Objectives

To target, investigate, and prosecute individuals who organize, direct, finance, or are otherwise engaged in high-level illegal drug trafficking enterprises, including large-scale money laundering organizations;

To promote a coordinated drug enforcement effort in each task force region;

To encourage maximum cooperation among all drug enforcement agencies; and

To make full use of financial investigative techniques.

Agencies

The success of OCDETF has been highly attributed to fostering collaboration among federal, state, and local law enforcement and effectively using prosecution attorneys at the early stages of investigations.

DEA

Since the inception of OCDETF, the DEA has played a leading role and now has 1,000 positions, including 775 special agents, dedicated to the program.

FBI IRS Immigration and Customs Coast Guard

Regions

Each of the 94 federal judicial districts was placed into one of thirteen OCDETF regions based on geographic proximity. Within each region, a Core City was designated.

Task Force Regions             Core Cities
New England                    Boston
New York/New Jersey            New York
Mid-Atlantic                   Baltimore
Great Lakes                    Chicago
Southeast                      Atlanta
West Central                   St. Louis
Florida/Caribbean              Miami
Southwest                      Houston
Pacific                        San Francisco

Atlanta

Atlanta was one of the original thirteen core cities and remains the Core City for the OCDETF Southeast Region. The original OCDETF Southeast Region encompassed the states of Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. In the 1997 there was a reorganization, that added the states of Mississippi and Louisiana to the Southeast Region. The Southeast Region is comprised of eighteen judicial districts, the most districts in any of the nine OCDETF regions.

San Francisco

The San Francisco Office is a Core City for OCDETF districts in the Pacific Region, which include the United States Attorney´s Offices in the District of Hawaii, Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, District of Alaska, Eeastern District of Washington, Western District of Washigton, District of Oregon, District of Idaho, District of Nevada, Eastern District of California, and the Northern District of California.

Links

narcotics investigations http://cryptome.quintessenz.org/mirror/irs-ci/36221.html

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