Tools to Facilitate Time Sensitive, Time Urgent Terrorist Financing Investigations

By Dennis Lormel

One of the lessons learned from 9/11, which has manifested itself in the aftermath of the London bombings is the critical importance of conducting time sensitive, time urgent investigations in terrorism matters. To their credit, investigators in London have done a masterful job of conducting a fast paced investigation. Time sensitive, time urgent investigative techniques are especially important in conducting the financial investigative component of a terrorism investigation.

Two mechanisms that would enhance the ability to conduct financial investigations in a more time sensitive, time urgent manner in the United States would be the granting of authority by Congress for the FBI to serve administrative subpoenas in terrorism investigations and to have financial records requested by law enforcement produced by financial institutions in an electronic format.

One of the lessons learned from 9/11, which has manifested itself in the aftermath of the London bombings is the critical importance of conducting time sensitive, time urgent investigations in terrorism matters. To their credit, investigators in London have done a masterful job of conducting a fast paced investigation. Time sensitive, time urgent investigative techniques are especially important in conducting the financial investigative component of a terrorism investigation.

As was the case in the United States immediately after 9/11, authorities are concerned about the potential for a second wave of attacks in London. One of the best mechanisms to determine if there are additional members of the terrorist cell, or if there is a support infrastructure, is to conduct a comprehensive financial investigation. Financial records and analysis will play an important role in establishing a timeline for the daily activities and associations of the identified subjects. Coupled with an analysis of communications to include telephones and internet, a thorough footprint will develop.

This brings me to the point of this article. Investigators must be afforded the best opportunity available to conduct time sensitive, time urgent investigations. This is particularly challenging in conducting financial investigations, which are inherently slow paced and cumbersome.

Two mechanisms that would enhance the ability to conduct financial investigations in a more time sensitive, time urgent manner in the United States would be the granting of authority by Congress for the FBI to serve administrative subpoenas in terrorism investigations and to have financial records requested by law enforcement produced by financial institutions in an electronic format.

The FBI has administrative subpoena authority for investigations of crimes to include drug trafficking, health care fraud and child exploitation. Such authority is lacking for terrorism cases. Approval of administrative subpoenas for terrorism investigations would enhance the FBI�s ability to conduct time sensitive, time urgent investigations. The Bureau has a proven record of issuing administrative subpoenas in an appropriate manner. Administrative subpoenas are subject to judicial scrutiny. FBI officials are accountable for the issuance of administrative subpoenas. The FBI, as Director Mueller has consistently stated, is mindful of, and dedicated to, protecting the civil rights of the American people. Those who are opposed to granting the FBI such authority should acquaint themselves with all the facts before reaching unfounded conclusions. Put in context, in the war on terrorism, the FBI are the good guys and terrorists are the bad guys. Questioning the motives of the good guys and jumping to the conclusion that by virtue of having administrative subpoena authority the FBI would abuse the privilege is wrong. The bad guys, the terrorists want to cause as much death and destruction as they can inflict. We need to support the good guys and give them what is needed to stop the bad guys and to protect our society from vicious attacks.
I was responsible for writing the following statement taken from the testimony of current FBI Deputy Director John Pistole when he appeared before the Senate Banking Committee on September 25, 2003. It is as relevant today as it was when written.
�One of the biggest challenges facing law enforcement when it comes to financial records analysis is the unavailability of financial records in electronic format. In the past, it was common for investigators to request and financial institutions to provide copies of financial records such as statements, copies of checks or deposit slips in hard-copy (i.e., paper) form. The delays inherent to their production and forwarding to law enforcement was complicated by the fact that the records were not readily accessible by the financial institution and because they are often in paper form they are not readily searchable or retrievable. This is especially true when time is of the essence during emerging threat situations where access to and analysis of the records is critical. Some financial institutions have made great strides in converting and storing their transactional and customer records in electronic format. The credit card industry is a good example of this. Many banks and institutions even allow their customers to view and download their account transactional data via the internet into financial management programs. However, others because of the nature of their business or the costs involved do not digitally store or are not capable of producing records electronically.
Future law enforcement investigations would be significantly enhanced if financial institutions were to develop and adopt standards of best practices for the storage and production of financial records in electronic format. Countless hours and resources on the part of private industry and the government could be saved if these records were stored and produced in a format that eliminated the need for investigators to re-input or type the information back into financial analysis programs.
Currently when records are not available in a digital format, we utilize high-speed scanners to scan and copy the records. Text is thereby converted to Optical Character Recognition (OCR) searchable text. By "digitizing" the documents into scanned, searchable images they become immediately available to all with a need or interest in the records. Digitizing the records not only facilitates rapid dissemination of the documents but also provides for enhanced searching and analysis. Storage, retrieval and discovery production costs are also thereby reduced. Once the records are digital, then advanced searching tools may be applied against them to identify key information, patterns or trends.
However, as long as relevant records remain in paper form whether held by the financial institution or the government, investigators are impeded in their timely dissemination and analysis. This can have an impact on our preventative efforts.
In summary, the increased promotion of anti-terrorist financing training both domestically and internationally would go a long way towards furthering cooperation and raising awareness of patterns in terrorist financing. Efforts to interdict illegal money remitters which undermine our financial institutions and provide a potential avenue for illicit funds to be transferred should be pursued. Finally, the production of financial records in electronic format would facilitate not only sharing and analysis, but increase our ability to tactically respond to emerging threats.�

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