WHEREAS, there is a need for domestic and international law enforcement agencies at all levels to focus on negative impacts upon communities associated with drug trafficking and other criminal enterprises by transnational criminal organizations (TCOs); and

WHEREAS, TCOs continue to grow in the United States through expansion of networks and interaction with local criminal groups and gangs; and

WHEREAS, the trafficking of deadly fentanyl and similar illicit drugs by TCOs, which are easier to transport without detection and substantially more powerful than morphine, present a clear and present danger to the global populace and are contributors to a public health crisis in the United States and countries around the world; and

WHEREAS, the United Nations Security Council has noted the close connection between international terrorism and transnational organized crime, including illicit drug trafficking and money laundering;1 and

WHEREAS, the rise in the use of the Dark Web and virtual currency transactions by TCOs to conduct illicit trade poses unique challenges to the international law enforcement community that requires global coordination, action, and support to combat; and

WHEREAS, the United Nations General Assembly called for international cooperation to address and counter the world drug problem, inter alia, more effective drug-related crime prevention and law enforcement measures, urges coordination with other international entities, including the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), as well as by addressing links with other forms of organized crime, including money laundering, corruption, and other criminal activities, mindful of their social and economic causes and consequences;2 and

WHEREAS, a global action approach to law enforcement that leverages investigative coordination and information sharing programs such as Interpol or the Drug Enforcement Administration–led multi- agency Special Operations Division, El Paso Intelligence Center, and other fusion centers with investigative strategies that follow drug proceeds back to the sources of supply will have the most significant overall law enforcement and community impact; and

WHEREAS, numerous operations have shown that investigations that prioritize depriving TCOs of illicit proceeds by following the money, no matter its form, within the financial system or in virtual currency, from illegal drug sales back to the sources of supply, result in effective dismantlement by depriving these TCOs of funds to support ongoing drug trafficking operations and other criminal enterprises. Now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that the International Association of Chiefs of Police encourages, where practicable, the adoption of a global action approach to fully exploit all available investigative leads, information, and links to other active investigations in combating TCOs engaged in drug trafficking, money laundering, terrorism, bribery, human trafficking, and other criminal offenses, including using INTERPOL resources and policing capabilities.

Submitted by: Narcotics & Dangerous Drugs Committee

NDD.16.19

1 UN Security Council Resolution 1373, Threats to International Peace and Security Caused by Terrorist Acts (2001),  https://www.un.org/sc/ctc/resources/databases/recommended-international-practices-codes-and-  standards/united-nations-security-council-resolution-1373-2001.

2 UN General Assembly Resolution 73/192, International Cooperation to Address and Counter the World Drug Problem (2019), https://undocs.org/en/A/RES/73/192.