MALAYSIAN COAST GUARD SEEKS USG SUPPORT FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KUALA LUMPUR 000147 SIPDIS SINGAPORE FOR NCIS STATE FOR EAP MTS, RSP, SCT COGARD FOR ALLEN, CARUOLO NAVY FOR NCIS HQ KABUL FOR CHAPMAN E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/26/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER MCAP MARR MY SUBJECT: MALAYSIAN COAST GUARD SEEKS USG SUPPORT FOR INVESTIGATIVE UNIT REF: A. 08 KL 1003 - MALAYSIA-US COAST GUARD COOPERATION ADVANCES ¶B. KL 99 - MALAYSIAN COAST GUARD RECEIVES ITS FIRST U.S. COAST GUARD CUTTER VISIT Classified By: Acting Political Counselor Jeremy Nathan for reasons 1.4 b and d. ¶1. (C) Summary: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has taken the first steps to establish a maritime criminal investigation division (MCID) and has requested access to USG expertise as it does so. Embassy Kuala Lumpur and its Law Enforcement Working Group support a coordinated, inter-agency response in this specific area led by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS). Such an effort complements post's on-going 1207-funded program led by the U.S. Coast Guard and USCG's draft MOU with MMEA, which provides for cooperation on maritime law enforcement (refs). Embassy and NCIS personnel from Washington and the Singapore Field Office will meet with MMEA leadership to discuss the full spectrum of challenges faced in establishing an MCID. NCIS, in coordination with post, will seek to develop a training plan that identifies the most appropriate inter-agency capacity building for the needs of the MMEA's new MCID. Post supports this additional channel of engagement as part of our wider law enforcement strategy to increase GOM capacity to investigate and prosecute criminal cases. End Summary. Investigating: A New Dimension to a Deepening Relationship -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) Post used 1207 funding to support an October 2008 visit to Washington of MMEA Director General Admiral Amdan. Admiral Amdan and his counterpart, USCG Commandant Admiral Thad Allen, agreed to pursue an MOU to formally recognize such areas of mutual interest and cooperation as: search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, command center operations, maritime environmental preservation, pollution control, and maritime safety and security. In addition to meetings at USCG Headquarters and the USCG Yorktown Training Center, the MMEA delegation received briefings at NCIS Headquarters. In early November, Special Agents from the NCIS Singapore Field Office contributed a two-day module on crime scene processing and evidence collection as a component of the two-week Advanced Boarding Officer Course conducted by a USCG Mobile Training Team. The module was well-received by the 24 MMEA officers who participated. (Note: NCIS's missions have traditionally been the protection of visiting ships and their personnel and the investigation of crimes committed by Navy personnel. The law enforcement liaison work undertaken in Malaysia by NCIS in support of the former mission has given regionally-based NCIS agents excellent local contacts with law enforcement, including the MMEA. Increasing the effectiveness of the MMEA supports both the immediate mission of force protection as well as post's strategic interest in supporting more effective Malaysian law enforcement investigations and prosecutions. End Note.) ¶3. (C) When training coordinators met recently with the MMEA Deputy Director General for Operations Admiral Noor Aziz, the Admiral reported that he was pleased with the progress of training. He added that the MMEA wanted to expand training for a core group of nine people that would form the nucleus of a nascent MCID (one captain, three commanders and five enlisted personnel). He asked that NCIS help guide MMEA through the process of establishing and maintaining an MCID, from specifying which criteria are used to hire personnel to designing and implementing a training program for investigators. During the February 2009 Advanced Boarding Officer Course, NCIS again provided its crime scene and evidence handling module. In addition, NCIS offered an expanded program to some 20 additional MMEA personnel, including members of the MCID core group. A Broad Mission Requiring an Integrated Approach -------------- --- KUALA LUMP 00000147 002 OF 002 ¶4. (C) In response to the MMEA's interest to engage, NCIS Director Thomas Betro and NCIS Assistant Director for Human resources Rod Baldwin will each travel to Kuala Lumpur March 2 and March 19 to meet with MMEA leadership. The exchanges will provide the basis for development of a training curriculum for MMEA criminal investigators in a maritime environment. However, as the mandate of the MMEA is to enforce all Malaysian laws at sea, the scope of its mission is broader than that of any single USG counterpart agency. For example, MMEA's MCID could be responsible for investigating manifold transnational crimes including: the smuggling of drugs and contraband; human trafficking; terrorism; environmental destruction; illegal immigration, logging and fishing; piracy; gun running; etc. For this reason, significant interagency coordination will be required of NCIS in partnership with the Embassy's Law Enforcement Working Group, which includes the RSO, Political Section, and representatives from Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE),and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The Coast Guard Investigation Service (CGIS) shares a strong interest in the MCID initiative and is making preparations to participate in the NCIS-led training as well as in our ongoing 1207-funded program. In coordination with Post, NCIS will also solicit input/participation from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers in both Georgia and South Carolina and from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). ¶5. (SBU) Comment: Post welcomes our expanding engagement with the four-year old MMEA. We are committed to mobilizing coordinated inter-agency support for this institution, which has a vital and growing role to play in law enforcement and the establishment of rule of law in Malaysia's maritime environment. End Comment. RAPSON