For those who may not be looking deeper holidays and blackout dates for travel planning these days, the second full week in November is important for reasons at once critically important any hopefully unremarkable among the general world populace.
This is “International Fraud Awareness Week.” [1]
Importantly, our own Michigan Senator Gary Peters took note of it. [2]
With what we were told was “quite a bit of effort to coordinate,” arrangements were made for the senator, members of his staff, and pre-approved media to tour key areas of US Customs and Border Protection operations at Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW) this morning. Jurisdiction falls under the Department of Homeland Security and, by our rough count, the ratio of armed, uniformed officers to visitors was never less than three-to-one. [3-5]
At various points during the structured tour, statistics were offered for perspective. For example, sixty-seven percent of all biological hazard intercepts nationwide take place here. Closer to the ground, remember the emerald ash borer issue? [6]
DTW is second in the nation for interecepts of wood pests. “We were number one for a long time,” one of the agents told Senator Peters.
The first of three areas covered in the route today was setup to over view broad functional and process responsibilities understaken at this facility. The process starts with the questions asked of travelers and what given answers will tell alert agents in terms of next responsible steps to be taken.
At one point, attention was focused on on drugs. Later, on equipment that allows both officials to both rapidly and reliably look inside cases without opening them.
One display consisted of six separate stacks piled high with Visa and MasterCard blanks, with sheets of holograms behind them — ready for use in creating fraudulent cards to use or sell on the black market.
Remember the presentation arranged by Saline Police Chief Jerrod Hart last November? This is but one slice of the upstream pipeline that makes that business a business. [7-11]
As Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, Senator Gary Peters arranged this visit to highlight the importance of bills on border security on which he has garnered bipartisan support. This is the one of the upstream points at which issues of security can be addressed as a means of reducing their chances of needing to deal with these issues at the local level. [12-14]
On a personal level, the Senator was very engaged with the people and subject matter as it came before him. He has clearly done his homework, appears passionate about these issues, and is comfortable taking a collaborative approach in dealing with what is clearly one of the most important challenges to our nation.
With behind-the-scenes context firmly established, US Customs and Border Protection took our group out to its third and final stop: The baggage claim area for international flight arrivals. There, two dogs and their handlers demonstrated distinctly different inspection techniques required to sniff-out drugs and contraband agricultural products secreted away in otherwise innocuous travel cases.
“Detroit Metro was the first airport in the nation to have dogs trained to find fentanyl,” noted one agent to Senator Peters. “All ports of entry now have it, of course.” [15]
As much as anything, the sort of visibility discussed today, and in effect every day in operations like this one across the United States, is key to deterring attempted fraud, smuggling, and other attempts to put the wellbeing of American citizens at risk. “International Fraud Awareness” is more than a week to be recognized; it is a day-in, day-out infrastructure that needs to be supported.
Today served as a substantive reminder of that.
References
- “Days Imaged” Saline Journal.
- Gary Peters: United States Senator for Michigan (home page).
- US Customs and Border Protection (home page).
- Detroit Metro | Willow Run: Wayne County Airport Authority (home page).
- US Department of Homeland Security (home page).
- Emerald Ash Borer Information Network (home page).
- “Saline Police Department To Host Fraud Expert For ‘Scam Presentation’ At United Church Of Christ On November 29” Dell Deaton (November 21, 2018) Saline Journal.
- “‘If You Only Remember One Thing From My Presentation Tonight, Remember This,’ Detective Jeremy Stempien, Regarding Scams” Dell Deaton (November 30, 2018) Saline Journal.
- “Police Department” Saline.
- Saline Police Department (Facebook Page).
- Saline Police (Twitter Feed).
- US Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs (home page).
- “Peters, Cornyn Bill to Address Staffing Shortages at Ports of Entry Advances in Senate” Minority Media (June 19, 2019) US Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs.
- “Senate Passes Bipartisan Bill to Protect America’s Domestic Food Supply and Agricultural Industries” Minority Media (October 25, 2019) US Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs.
- “Fentanyl” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
