EL SALVADOR: INL MONTHLY ACTIVITIES REPORT FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SAN SALVADOR 001260 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA/CEN DEGLER STATE FOR INL MARTIN E.O. 12958: DECL: 10 YEARS TAGS: EFIN PINR PINS PREL SNAR KCRM KIPR KJUS ES SUBJECT: EL SALVADOR: INL MONTHLY ACTIVITIES REPORT FOR APRIL 2006 Classified By: DCM Michael A. Butler for reasons 1.4(b) & (d) ¶1. (U) The following summarizes Embassy INL activities in April 2006. -------------- ILEA -------------- ¶2. (U) From April 4 to 6, the PNC hosted the second annual regional gang conference attended by representatives from Mexico, Central America, and the United States. The conference provided a forum to discuss the gang phenomenon in the region, to debate best practices, and to establish links of communication between U.S. federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and their counterparts in other regional governments. Following the success of the event, ILEA will host a Curriculum Development Conference (CDC) from June 5 to 9 to develop an anti-gang curriculum to be taught at ILEA. The CDC will be attended by U.S. and regional law enforcement officials, including prosecutors and prison officials. -------------- INL DAS Christie McCampbell Visit -------------- ¶3. (U) Newly appointed INL DAS McCampbell visited El Salvador to attend the gang conference and to evaluate INL programs. While at the conference, she spoke with regional prosecutors and police officials about the pressing need to address gang violence. She also had the opportunity to visit the following projects: ILEA-Santa Tecla, ILEA-Comalapa, the Joint Intelligence Counter-Narcotics Center, and the Forward Operating Location. ¶4. (C) In addition, she met with GOES Police Director Avila and Migration Director Santibanez, and Assistant U.S. Attorney General Alice Fisher, to discuss issues related to deportations and the Secure Borders Initiative. More specifically, DAS McCampbell was briefed on a project proposal to purchase an AFIS software license for the GOES so that they can take biometric fingerprints of criminals and share those fingerprints with U.S. law enforcement agencies. Post is working with her office to evaluate the feasibility of this project. -------------- NARCOTICS INTERDICTION -------------- ¶5. (U) Operations: Officers of the Anti-Narcotics Police (DAN) at the INL-constructed vehicle inspection facility in El Amatillo inspected 337 cars, 375 passenger buses, and 166 commercial freight trucks, resulting in the arrest of one individual for narcotics trafficking and the seizure of four kilograms of heroin. In all operations throughout the country, the INL-supported DAN seized 46 kg of marijuana, four kg of heroin, and one kg of cocaine, and arrested 81 individuals for trafficking offenses. ¶6. (U) Training/Equipment: INL sponsored the travel of the Director of the DAN to attend a Mini-IDEC conference in Mexico. INL purchased five replacement swab kits for previously donated ion scanners. -------------- MONEY LAUNDERING -------------- ¶7. (U) Operations: The INL-supported Financial Investigations Unit (FIU) received 10 Suspicious Activities Reports, opened three new investigations, and identified and removed 169 false dollar-denominated bills from circulation. No arrests or convictions for money laundering were realized. ¶8. (C) Equipment: The Office of Technical Assistance (OTA) within the Department of Treasury and INL provided hardware, software, and training for a secure communication and analysis system between the Fiscalia and the DAN. This Secure Exchange of Information System (SEIS) eliminates paper exchanges between the Fiscalia and the police relative to money laundering investigations, while simultaneously providing software support to analyze data collected during investigations. (Septel on the effectiveness of SEIS.) -------------- -------------- HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING AND TRANSIT SECURITY -------------- -------------- ¶9. (U) Operations: The INL-supported Border Police (Fronteras) arrested 12 individuals for human smuggling and two people for trafficking in persons. Police operations rescued 10 minors in the process of being smuggled. No convictions for either offense were realized. -------------- -------------- ORGANIZED CRIME, RULE OF LAW, AND DEMAND REDUCTION -------------- -------------- ¶10. (U) Organized Crime: In April, the PNC arrested 1,047 individuals for gang-related criminal activity. Of these arrests, 56 percent of the cases were dismissed for lack of evidence, three percent are incarcerated awaiting trial, and 41 percent were assigned alternative sentencing (community service). 28 gang members were killed due to gang-related violence. ¶11. (U) Equipment: INL provided digital cameras and additional memory chips to enhance the surveillance capabilities of police units assigned to gang areas. -------------- INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS -------------- ¶12. (U) INL provided digital cameras, binoculars, and night vision goggles to enhance the surveillance capabilities of the INL-supported IPR unit within the Customs police. Barclay