21-08-2007
Nick McTaggart
Superintendent Nicholas McTaggart (right) is thanked by Keith Roffey for his presentation on the work of the Australian Federal Police (AFP). The Superintendent showed an 8-minute DVD on the activities of the AFP, spoke on the responsibilities of the AFP, and responded at length to questions. The information presented included:
- The Commonwealth Police force was phased out in 1979, when that force, the ACT Police force, and elements of the Narcotics Bureau were reformed into the new Australian Federal Police force.
- The AFP is the chief source of advice to the Australian Government on policing.
- The responsibilities of the AFP have increased over the years, particularly since 9/11, to the point where the current budget is $1.3 billion dollars.
- The AFP has both uniformed and investigative arms as it seeks to meet both community policing and trans-national crime fighting requirements, as well as protecting VIPs, important visitors, and national infrastructure.
- Most recently, the AFP has been tasked with assisting with aboriginal communities.
- The AFP cooperates extensively with police forces from other countries, and has people embedded in most Asian countries.
- The Transnational Crime Coordination Centre (TCCC) provides a central point for investigations on terrorism, money-laundering, hi-tech crime, people smuggling, and drug trafficking.
- The Jakarta Centre for Law Enforcement was established jointly by the Indonesian and Australian governments as a co-operative way to coordinate policing in the region and around the world.
- The AFP has, and continues to, invest heavily in the use of biometrics, forensic IT, genetics, materials technology, and data fusion and data mining to provide hi-tech investigative tools.
- Currently, the AFP has a presence in Jordan to train Iraqi police.
- The AFP's strategy in taking the fight offshore in people smuggling has been so successful that the Baxter Detention Centre has been closed. The fights against child sex crimes and drugs have also benefited from an offshore focus.
- The APEC conference is a major exercise. Security is the province of the NSW Police, with about 450 AFP members supporting the task. There will be over 100 planes of people and equipment coming from the USA alone.
Last changed: 03:20:38 04-10-2008