NCJ Number
220924
Journal
THE POLICE CHIEF Volume: 74 Issue: 10 Dated: October 2007 Pages: 30,32,34,36
Date Published
October 2007
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article describes the components and first-phase results of Operation Triple X, a joint undercover operation to counter the counterfeiting of travel documents in Indonesia, which involves the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS), the Indonesian National Police (INP), and the law enforcement and immigration agencies of four other countries.
Abstract
Operation Triple X is centered in Surabaya, Indonesia, where Muslim terrorist organizations have benefited from the city's widespread corruption and criminal enterprises involved in the counterfeiting of travel documents. Operation Triple X emerged from evidence that terrorists linked to Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), an Indonesian terrorist group with designs on targets overseas, had conducted business with Indonesian crime syndicates involved in counterfeiting travel documents. Subsequently, fraud investigators at the U.S. Consulate General in Surabaya identified suspected counterfeit documents submitted by individuals applying for U.S. visas. A DS investigation coordinated with INP led to undercover INP personnel contacting the counterfeit document merchants and setting up undercover operations to purchase package deals on fraudulent documents. In May 2005, the INP launched an initial series of raids on these operations, arresting dozens of suspects. The first phase of the investigation led to the charging and conviction of 84 suspects under Indonesian fraud statutes. The investigation found that in addition to providing counterfeit travel documents for terrorist operatives, they also supplied the following criminal enterprises: illegal immigration, pedophile operations, trafficking in women and children, drug trafficking, arms smuggling, and money laundering. Operation Triple X continues to collect evidence related to criminal operations that use counterfeit travel documents. Associated raids have shut down 27 major international criminal groups. The success of this operation has depended upon cooperative relationships between the INP and representatives of the DS and similar agencies of other countries represented in Indonesia.