Interpol officers commended
The Commissioner, Mr Tsang Yam-pui, recently received letters of commendation from the City & County of San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) for Hong Kong Interpol officers involved in the arrest and extradition of a man wanted for murder. In the letter, the SFPD expressed gratitude to: Detective Senior Inspector Mr Todd A Bancroft, Detective Police Constable Mr Yip Chi-keung, and Detective Senior Police Constables Mr Jong Chak-ming and Mr Ng Pong-ming.
A man by the name of Joe Chen had been placed on the international wanted list by the United States in December 1992. He was wanted for the alleged blatant murder of a former girlfriend's boyfriend outside her house.
In his letter, the Chief of Police, Mr Prentise Sanders, complimented the Hong Kong officers for their professionalism. He said: "On February 27, 2002, a murderer wanted in the US was detected entering Hong Kong through an immigration point. The US Authorities in Hong Kong were notified and they in turn notified the SFPD and the District Attorney's Office of Chen's presence in Hong Kong. The San Francisco authorities notified the Hong Kong Authorities that Chen was indeed wanted and would be extradited if arrested by the Hong Kong Authorities. Accordingly on February 28, the Hong Kong Police arrested Chen and detained him pending judicial proceedings to extradite him.
"Over the next eight months, there was an intensive series of communications that took place between the authorities in Hong Kong, the local authorities in San Francisco and the federal authorities in Washington DC. Many of these communications required a very short response time because of the time difference between the three cities and the constraints imposed by the three different legal systems involved.
Fast Response to Time-sensitive requests
"While these activities were talking place, officers of the Hong Kong Police were always able to respond with alacrity to the often time-sensitive requests that were made to them. Detective Senior Inspector Mr Todd Bancroft was the officer-in-charge of the Hong Kong investigation.
"As a result of the diligence and attention to detail that was exercised by the Hong Kong Police Officers, a murderer was apprehended and substantive investigative leads were obtained," Mr Sanders concluded.
"Of course, I am most grateful for the letters of commendation," said Mr Bancroft, "but all we did was to carry out our duties in the usual expeditious and efficient manner. We are a well-trained, experienced and conscientious group of officers who, through good teamwork, achieved our objective.
"By the time we received the formal diplomatic note requesting 'provisional arrest' we knew that Chen was staying in a Kowloon hotel.
Successful Arrest
"We then mounted a surveillance operation on the hotel and waited for him to appear. By pre-arrangement, the hotel security staff signalled us when he did so, and that was most fortunate because he bore little resemblance to the only photograph of him that we possessed. He was quietly arrested and taken before a magistrate.
"There were risks, of course, because he was a violent man. But we had complete confidence in our competence to do that for which we had trained.
"Actually, extraditions are just a very small part of our duties," explained Mr Bancroft. "We are responsible for so much more." He then briefed OffBeat on the organisation and duties of the Liaison Bureau.
The Hong Kong Police Liaison Bureau
The Liaison Bureau is a dedicated unit committed to fighting cross-boundary crime through intelligence sharing, training programme exchanges, and active liaison with both Mainland and overseas law enforcement agencies. The Mainland and Macao are looked after by the Liaison Division, the Interpol Division looks after the rest of the world. The Bureau is the first point of contact for liaison and investigative assistance with all outside law enforcement agencies, both in terms of incoming and outgoing requests.
There are only 23 officers in the Bureau. A Senior Superintendent is the Officer-in-Charge, and he is supported by a Superintendent. There is also one SP posted to Interpol Headquarters in Lyon who comes under the SSP LB's command. The divisions are each headed by a CIP and are subdivided into sections responsible for different geographical areas. A Senior Inspector heads each section and he is supported by one or more officers, depending on the normal workload for that section.
Liaison Bureau duties are considerable and varied. For example, the number of liaison and investigative matters taken up by the Bureau in 2002 involved 809 incoming requests and 472 outgoing requests.
Since 1997, the Bureau has adopted a more proactive liaison strategy designed to achieve specific objectives: (1) Maintaining an effective and co-operative liaison relationship; (2) Fostering cordial and close working relationships with key individuals and departments; (3) Enhancing co-operation and exchange of intelligence and information concerning transnational organised crimes; and, (4) Forming alliances and strategic partnerships with the law enforcement agencies of identified countries for long-term bilateral co-operation and intelligence exchange.
New Interpol Communication System
Hong Kong was one of the first Interpol members to establish a new 'small infrastructure' communication network with ICPO HQ in Lyon, which replaces the older antiquated 'X-400' system. The new one is known as the 'I-24/7' system and it runs through a secure Internet connection thereby enabling a more efficient and comprehensive medium for Interpol communications, at a much-reduced cost. The Bureau also recently installed a powerful new computer (in line with ICPO guidelines), which allows for the electronic transmission, reception, and deletion of International Interpol Notices. It also allows for received notices to be disseminated to interested parties in the Force via the PEN system.
The Interpol officers commended were (from left) Detective Police Constable Mr Yip Chi-keung, Detective Senior Inspector Mr Todd A Bancroft, and Detective Senior Police Constables, Mr Jong Chak-ming and Mr Ng Pong-ming