Connecting police
Securing the world
Role of INTERPOL
in Asset Recovery
Jaganathan Saravanasamy
Assistant Director, Anti-Corruption Sub-Directorate
ICPO-INTERPOL
200, quai Charles de Gaulle
69006 Lyon, Paris
j.saravanasamy@interpol.int
INTERPOL – a global organization
Created in 1923, INTERPOL is the world’s largest
international police organization, with 190 member
countries
General Secretariat in Lyon, France,
six Regional Bureaus, one Liaison
Office, and Special Representatives of
INTERPOL to the United Nations and to the European
Union in Brussels.
Four official languages: Arabic, English, French and
Spanish
A National Central Bureau (NCB) in each member country
INTERPOL National Central Bureaus - NCBs
General Secretariat
NCBs
Specialised Law
enforcement
agencies
Airports
Ports
Borders
Police stations
INTERPOL’s 4 core functions
Secure global
police
communications
services
Operational data
Services and
databases for
police
Operational police
support services
Police training
and
development
Core function #2: Operational data services and databases for police
INTERPOL Notices and Diffusions
Wanted persons
Seeking additional information
Warnings about known criminals
Missing persons
Unidentified bodies
Special INTERPOL-UN Security Council
Warnings of threats
+ Diffusions
Core function #3: Operational police support services
INTERPOL’s initiatives in Anti-Corruption & AML
 Corruption was named as INTERPOL’s crime priority area in 2007
 Asset recovery is the natural extension of AC investigation
 Tools
 multi-purpose tools
 Customized tools
Difficulties in tackling Corruption
THE OFFENCE
THE EFFORTS
• It is increasingly
transnational
• Countries are sovereign and legislative
jurisdiction is limited by boundaries.
• Investigative process is physical, the
channel is lengthy,
compartmentalized, procedure and
requirements different and often
frustrating.
• Value moves across
borders, very fast, in
electronic form
• Even assets created out
of corrupt money are
stored in electronic
form.
• Locating and linking assets stored
electronically is difficult. They often
change form making them difficult to
trace.
United Nations Convention against
Corruption (UNCAC)
Chapter II
Chapter III
Preventive
measures
Criminalization &
Law Enforcement
Chapter V
Asset Recovery
Chapter IV
International
Cooperation
Anti-Corruption Office
• INTERPOL's Anti-Corruption Office is engaged in
a number of initiatives designed to combat
corruption and encourage the implementation
of the United Nations Convention against
Corruption (UNCAC).
• It seeks to train, support and co-ordinate
individuals in law enforcement through a variety
of programs in order to expose and address the
problem of corruption.
Approach to Asset Recovery
• Operational Coordination: Global Focal Points for Asset
Recovery
• Capcity Building: INTERPOL Global Programme on AntiCorruption and Asset Recovery
• Operational Meetings: We coordinate Operational
meetings for AR
The Focal Point Initiative
- concept
Authorized list of names and
contact details
Use of Interpol’s secure I-24/7
law enforcement
communication platform
Repository of skills and tools
and a secured database for
ongoing cases
Authorized INTERPOL Red
Notices on Corruption and
future guidelines on how to
issue them
The Focal Point Initiative –Features.
• Ordinarily available and restrictedA web-based application (through https://)
• A secured channel for exchange information between Focal
Points-(through https://)
• A restricted access to the notices on corruption- (through
https:// e-ASF2/ICIS)
• A criminal database for ongoing case (through I-24/7)
Strategy for CB
•
•
•
•
•
•
Franchise model
Out-reach in partnership
Complemaentary in nature
Regional approach
Comprehensive package
Workshop model for five working days
Role we play….
• Facilitating role
• Suggest and help select course content
• Suggest and help select faculty
• Prescribe and select the participants
Role partner plays
• Provides an institutional set-up
• Provides class room infrastructure
• Supplements faculty
• Provides and logistics
Method….
• Case study based
• Investigator/Prosecutor who handled
the case teaches
• Hand-on workshop
• Pros & cons discussed
• Group discussions
• Groups come out with best practices
Focus…
• On Investigator & Prosecutor
• On evidence
• On collecting, preserving and presenting
admissible evidence
• Complete the triangle of crime-criminalasset by evidence
Because, efficient investigation is fundamental to successful
asset recovery
The First programme
• Hosted by the CBI New Delhi between
13&17Feb 2012
• For Asia Pacific region
• 36 participants from 16 countries
A balanced diet
• UNCAC and OECD Convention-A critical analysis
• Preventive vigilance and demonstration of preventive
tools
• Corruption in contracting and procurements
• Corruption in extracting natural resources
• Use of INTERPOL tools and guides
A balanced diet
• Role of Intelligence in corruption investigation
• Tracking proceeds of corruption in virtual
world
• Preserving, extracting evidence from
electronic network
• Practical and hands-on training in extraction of
evidence from electronic medium
A balanced diet
• Corruption and high value financial frauds
• Investigating corruption in sports
• Issues in writing MLA requests
• Investigation of corruption in sports
• Group exercise on best practices
Operational Meetings
• Request can be from any member country
• A seconded police officer of IPSG acts as a expert
coordinator
• Case officers from relevant countries invited on the
platform• Experts invited to advise on complex issues
• If need be, prosecutors are invited
• The coordinator from IPSG, draws up the agenda
The Dynamics of Ops mtg
• From within the participants, a Task Force
emerges
• Way forward emerges on consensus
• An Expert Team assembled to de deployed on
specific mission
• Often, member countries and Intl. Agencies
commit resources for the mission
• Coordinator at IPSG is the contact point &
manages IE platform
The Dynamics
• Core case and satellite cases discussed
• Outcome of criminal as well as intelligence
investigation shared
• Problem areas & complexities identified
• Issues concerning MLA/LRs sorted out
• Structure, modalities and host for a depository for
information exchange, worked out
• Strategies worked out
• Contact points for future course decided
• Bilateral / side / informal meetings
Thank you!
The INTERPOL Anti-corruption Office
IPSG/Lyon