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NM
Attorney General Patricia Madrid
announces
domestic terrorism initiatives
ALBUQUERQUE -
"I
doubt that anyone will ever be the same in the aftermath of the terrorist
attack of Sept. 11. In New Mexico our security concerns are somewhat
unique as we are home to national laboratories, numerous Air Force bases,
as well as WIPP. Sept. 11th has taught us that unimagined
horrors may be visited upon us. It is incumbent upon us to be
prepared," Attorney General Patricia Madrid said Tuesday, Nov. 20, in
announcing her domestic terrorism initiatives for New Mexico.
"I have assigned a special investigator from my
office, who has more than 33 years experience in state and federal law
enforcement and a strong background in domestic and international
terrorism, to serve fulltime on the Joint Terrorism Task Force, which is
headed by the FBI,” she said.
“New Mexico leads many states in that we have had
this task force in place prior to the recent terrorist attacks. Since
Sept. 11 the activity of the task force has increased tremendously,"
Madrid said.
The mission of the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF)
is to gather information necessary to discover any acts of terrorism, both
domestic and international, against any government or private entity in
New Mexico, Madrid said.
The JTTF pulls together resources from numerous
federal departments, including, Justice, Defense, State, Treasury,
Interior, and Transportation as well as numerous state agencies.
Fulltime members of New Mexico's JTTF include: the
FBI, NM Attorney General (Madrid), NM Department of Public Safety, U.S.
Attorney, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S.
Secret Service and U.S. Customs.
In addition to the fulltime participants in the JTTF,
numerous agencies provide part-time support to the task force including
the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office, Immigration and Naturalization,
and the Internal Revenue Service.
"The JTTF concept has proven to be the most
successful way to address antiterrorism investigations through an
interagency approach involving the law enforcement and public safety
community," said FBI Special Agent in Charge Thomas M. Kuker.
“These task forces broaden interagency liaison and
communications, eliminating a duplication of effort, and combine federal,
state and local law enforcement resources in the fight against
terrorism,” Kuker said.
“The counterterrorism successes achieved thus far
by the JTTFs here and across the country are due, in part, to the
promotion of an atmosphere of enhanced coordination or ‘immediate
transparency’ between the FBI and other law enforcement members. The
presence of FBI and other investigators representing various local, state,
and federal agencies on these task forces both encourages and ensures the
timely and continued sharing of valuable intelligence-related information
between the participating agencies," Kuker said.
Attorney General Madrid noted, "While the vast
majority of investigative and prosecutorial work against terrorism is
within the jurisdiction of the federal government, we at the state level
should do all we can to assist these important efforts.”
“I am committing my office in every reasonable way
we can to help out, and I am confident the legislature will help support
us on this," Madrid said.
"I have created a multidisciplinary team within
my office to address the concerns of terrorism within the borders of our
state. I have brought together investigators and attorneys from a number
of divisions including criminal prosecutors and investigators, health care
attorneys, consumer protection attorneys, crime victim's advocate, and an
environmental enforcement investigator.
“This Attorney General’s Office (AGO) internal
team meets regularly to address a wide range of issues related to domestic
terrorism. For example, our Consumer Protection staff is reviewing
activities of questionable charities apparently trying to capitalize on
the Sept. 11 tragedy,” Madrid said.
“This staff is also working with other states and
the federal government to investigate online sales of drugs like Cipro for
anthrax and possible scam artists who sell bogus tests, detectors and
remedies allegedly designed for bio-terrorism,” Madrid said.
“Our Health Care attorneys are addressing legal
issues associated with bio-terrorism preparedness, while the environmental
investigator is concerned with the protection of our water systems and
other issues related to chemical and biological warfare through weapons of
mass destruction," Madrid said.
"We have concluded that New Mexico's Anti
Terrorism Act is in need of updating in this post Sept. 11 environment.
The state statute, for example, does not include biochemical weapons in
the act,” AG Madrid said.
“And an anthrax hoax perpetrated in New Mexico
could not be prosecuted since we currently have no law under which to
bring such a charge. I will therefore be asking the legislature to pass a
limited number of modifications that will bring our Antiterrorism Act up
to date with the current domestic terrorism environment,” she said.
“Among other changes, I will also propose to
increase the penalty for identity theft to the felony level to permit
extradition of suspected offenders," Madrid said.
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