CaptainAmerica
03-08-2012, 10:27 AM
NEWARK, New Jersey (AP) — The New York Police Department's clandestine surveillance of Muslims has damaged the public's trust in New Jersey law enforcement and jeopardized some of the relationships agents had sought to build in the community since the 2001 terror attacks, the head of the FBI in New Jersey said Wednesday.
Michael Ward, the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Newark Division, emphasized, however, that his agency has an overall good working relationship with the NYPD.
He said two NYPD investigators had been assigned to the New Jersey-based Joint Terrorism Task Force for years and operated under clear guidelines and engaged in regular interagency briefings.
Ward said he learned about some of the activities conducted by a different NYPD intelligence division through a series of reports by The Associated Press. The reports detailed the department's secret surveillance of mosques, Muslim-owned businesses and college campuses across the Northeast.
He said it was those types of activities that risk undermining a key aspect of law enforcement: the ability to enlist the trust and cooperation of the public.
"What we're seeing now with the uproar that's occurring in New Jersey, is that we're starting to see cooperation pulled back," Ward said. "People are concerned that they're being followed, they're concerned that they can't trust law enforcement and it's having a negative impact."
Ward told reporters he was aware that officers from the NYPD's intelligence division were working in the state, adding that it was known to most New Jersey law enforcement officials who work on counterterrorism issues. But Ward said that although he met with NYPD intelligence officials on a bimonthly basis, he wasn't briefed on the extent of the NYPD's operations outside the task force.
In response to the criticism, a NYPD spokesman said police ties with the Muslim community remained strong.
NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said that ongoing relationships with Muslims in the region have led to the arrest of several suspected terrorists in New Jersey and elsewhere.
Muslim leaders in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and elsewhere have requested investigations into the NYPD's activities.
http://news.yahoo.com/state-fbi-head-speaks-outs-nypd-operations-184832685.html
News article from August 25,2011 titled "The CIA Is Helping the NYPD Spy, Probably on Muslims"
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2011/08/cia-helping-nypd-spy-probably-muslims/41742/
New York’s police commissioner confirmed Thursday that a CIA officer is working out of police headquarters there … But he and the CIA said the spy agency’s role at the department is an advisory one.
Speaking to reporters in New York, commissioner Raymond Kelly acknowledged that the CIA trains NYPD officers on "trade craft issues," meaning espionage techniques, and advises police about events happening overseas.
I guess its back to the drawing board for the CIA since those neighborhoods are rejecting the NYPD espionage.
Michael Ward, the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Newark Division, emphasized, however, that his agency has an overall good working relationship with the NYPD.
He said two NYPD investigators had been assigned to the New Jersey-based Joint Terrorism Task Force for years and operated under clear guidelines and engaged in regular interagency briefings.
Ward said he learned about some of the activities conducted by a different NYPD intelligence division through a series of reports by The Associated Press. The reports detailed the department's secret surveillance of mosques, Muslim-owned businesses and college campuses across the Northeast.
He said it was those types of activities that risk undermining a key aspect of law enforcement: the ability to enlist the trust and cooperation of the public.
"What we're seeing now with the uproar that's occurring in New Jersey, is that we're starting to see cooperation pulled back," Ward said. "People are concerned that they're being followed, they're concerned that they can't trust law enforcement and it's having a negative impact."
Ward told reporters he was aware that officers from the NYPD's intelligence division were working in the state, adding that it was known to most New Jersey law enforcement officials who work on counterterrorism issues. But Ward said that although he met with NYPD intelligence officials on a bimonthly basis, he wasn't briefed on the extent of the NYPD's operations outside the task force.
In response to the criticism, a NYPD spokesman said police ties with the Muslim community remained strong.
NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said that ongoing relationships with Muslims in the region have led to the arrest of several suspected terrorists in New Jersey and elsewhere.
Muslim leaders in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and elsewhere have requested investigations into the NYPD's activities.
http://news.yahoo.com/state-fbi-head-speaks-outs-nypd-operations-184832685.html
News article from August 25,2011 titled "The CIA Is Helping the NYPD Spy, Probably on Muslims"
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2011/08/cia-helping-nypd-spy-probably-muslims/41742/
New York’s police commissioner confirmed Thursday that a CIA officer is working out of police headquarters there … But he and the CIA said the spy agency’s role at the department is an advisory one.
Speaking to reporters in New York, commissioner Raymond Kelly acknowledged that the CIA trains NYPD officers on "trade craft issues," meaning espionage techniques, and advises police about events happening overseas.
I guess its back to the drawing board for the CIA since those neighborhoods are rejecting the NYPD espionage.