Intelligence Driven Drug Enforcement Making Undesirable Routes

Through their High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Awareness Program (HITDA), the Arizona Region has seized illicit drugs with an estimated wholesale value of $1.19 billion in the past year. Elizabeth Kempshall, Director of the HIDTA, speaks exclusively on the challenges associated with facilitating cooperation among law enforcement agencies, and highlights various successes on the South-Western Border of the U.S. Speak about the challenges associated with facilitating cooperation among law enforcement agencies across the federal to tribal spectrum… Each Federal, state, local, and tribal agency has a unique mission and this uniqueness can often create challenges when multiple agencies try to come together to address such a significant problem, like drug trafficking. It is critical to find the commonality in the goals of each agency and highlight how each agency can be successful in achieving their goal by working together. Presenting an accurate assessment of the drug threat facing the community will identify the areas of mutual interest to the various agencies. A multi-agency strategy to address the threat must be developed and presented to the leadership of each agency. A well-defined strategy and mission will afford the leaders the opportunity to identify how the needs of their communities will be met by working collectively to address the drug trafficking threats in their areas of responsibilities. What’s being done at the ONDCP to enhance law enforcement intelligence sharing? Talk about the successes of the HIDTA program… Through the HIDTA program, Federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies significantly improve their ability to disrupt and dismantle drug trafficking organizations when they work together and share information. Each HIDTA sponsors an Intelligence and Information Sharing Initiative, known as the Investigative Support Center (ISC). The ISC is responsible for developing information and intelligence collection requirements, and for collecting, evaluating, collating, analyzing, and disseminating law enforcement information and intelligence for participating agencies. The ISC consist of commingled participants from Federal, and state, local, and tribal agencies. Highlight the various ‘wins’ you’ve seen in the past year with regards to mitigating the flow of drugs across the south west border…what can you attribute this success to? Fully understanding the drug-related threat in Arizona and using an intelligence-driven enforcement strategy, the Arizona HIDTA Initiatives are having a more significant impact on the DTOs operating in Arizona and throughout the United States. During the previous year, Arizona Initiatives disrupted or dismantled 37 DTOs and MLOs operating within Arizona, of which 57% were international or multi-state in scope. Arizona investigations focused on five Consolidated Priority Organization Targets (CPOTs) and three Regional Priority Organization Targets (RPOTs). Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) designated cases totaled six. The level of sophistication of these cases necessitated the use of 298 separate court-ordered pen registers and 123 Title III orders, a 413% increase over the previous year’s Title III orders. Local community impact investigations were extremely successful and accounted for 43% of the DTOs/MLOs disrupted or dismantled during the period. The Arizona HIDTA seized illicit drugs with an estimated wholesale value of $1.19 billion, a 106% increase over the previous year. Marijuana continued to lead as the most seized drug, with 519,954 kilograms seized, an increase of 118% over the previous year. Arizona Initiatives experienced a significant increase in both methamphetamine and heroin seized, with methamphetamine seizures increasing 88% to 728 kilograms and heroin increasing 1,017% to 257 kilograms. The return on investment for every $1 received by the Arizona HIDTA was $112.09, a 100% increase over the previous year. The Arizona HIDTA Domestic Highway Enforcement (DHE) program conducted 898 operations and assisted in the coordination of 2,650 Stonegarden Project Operations. The intelligence and investigative leads developed from those operations were essential to the overall Arizona strategy. DHE operations seized illicit drugs with an estimated wholesale value of over $39 million and seized $7.2 million in cash and assets. Two international DTOs were identified, with one disrupted and 782 individuals arrested. The Arizona HIDTA statewide fugitive Task Force arrested 4,228 subjects, an 18% increase over the previous year. Drug-related arrests accounted for 32% of the overall arrests, with a higher percentage of those arrested wanted for crimes related to drug use or violent crimes associated with drug rip-offs and/or home invasions. Fugitive apprehensions resulted in seized drugs, currency, and assets valued at $2 million. As evidenced by the above described one-year accomplishments, the Arizona HIDTA Task Forces are having an impact on the Sinaloa Cartel’s operations by making Arizona an undesirable route for their drug trafficking activities. Even with the accomplishments of the previous year, there is much more work to be done but using an intelligence-driven approach, the investigators are able to target the most significant traffickers operating in and through Arizona. What do you require to improve ‘intelligence driven drug enforcement’? Speak about the future focus for ONDCP… The Arizona HIDTA Executive Board directed the successful restructuring and refocusing of the Arizona HIDTA Investigative Support Center (ISC). Through those efforts, intelligence became an integral component of the infrastructure of the Arizona HIDTA Program. The ISC is staffed by representatives of participating agencies who have direct on-site access to their agencies’ information databases. The Arizona HIDTA ISC now enhances the sharing of intelligence among law enforcement agencies, the Arizona Counter Terrorism Information Center (ACTIC), the Alliance to Combat Transnational Threats (ACTT), and the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC), through the systematic collection, analysis, and dissemination of secure, accurate, and timely intelligence. This cooperative model of sharing promotes interagency communication and coordination of activity regarding counter-drug efforts; enhances officer safety through deconfliction; eliminates duplication of effort; and is critical to combating the increasing threat of narcotics traffickers and criminal organizations. The continued focus on using intelligence to drive investigative efforts against the most significant targets operating in and through Arizona will have the greatest impact, thereby making Arizona an undesirable route for the Sinaloa Cartel. [eventPDF] ________________________________________ ELIZABETH W. KEMPSHALL In January 2011, Elizabeth Kempshall became the Executive Director of the Arizona HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area). The Arizona HIDTA was established in 1990 as part of the Southwest Border HIDTA, which includes California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. The HIDTA Program is a grant-funded initiative of the Office of National Drug Control Policy that provides assistance to federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug trafficking regions of the United States. The Arizona HIDTA coordinates and supports the efforts of more than 575 sworn law enforcement officials from 72 agencies to target the most significant drug trafficking organizations impacting Arizona. From May 2007 until December 2010, Ms. Kempshall was the Special Agent in Charge of the Phoenix Field Division for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which encompasses the entire state of Arizona. She was responsible for the division’s daily enforcement operations, drug diversion investigations, and administration of DEA policy. Ms. Kempshall began her career with the DEA in 1984 as a Special Agent in the Las Vegas District Office where she worked as an undercover agent in several major drug investigations. In 1988, Ms. Kempshall was transferred to the Los Angeles Field Division where she was assigned to the Los Angeles Police Department Drug Task Force and later to the HIDTA Task Group. In 1991, she was reassigned to the DEA International Training Division in Quantico, Virginia where she taught drug enforcement courses to law enforcement agencies in Asia, Africa, South America and Europe. While serving at the Office of Training, Ms. Kempshall was selected as the DEA’s representative in the development of the first International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) in Budapest, Hungary. In 1997, Ms. Kempshall was promoted to a Supervisory Special Agent at the Miami Field Division, Ft. Lauderdale District Office where she supervised the Southeast Florida HIDTA Task Force, consisting of 22 local agencies. In 2000, Ms. Kempshall was transferred to DEA’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) in Plantation, Florida to serve as an Inspector. Two years later, she was promoted to the position of Senior Inspector at DEA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. In 2002, she was reassigned to the position of Associate Deputy Chief Inspector of OPR at DEA Headquarters in Washington, D.C., and later served as Chief of the Executive Policy and Strategic Planning staff in the Office of the Deputy Administrator, DEA Headquarters. In 2005, Ms. Kempshall was transferred to the Houston Field Division as an Assistant Special Agent in Charge where she led the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Strike Force. In this position, she supervised over 100 agents, as well as state and local investigators.

Intelligence Driven Drug Enforcement Making Undesirable Routes

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