Tornado Alley (PROG)

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Turf wars we could do better without, we have similar problems, Peg ..

AFP secrets undermine air safety
* Paul Maley .. * The Australian
* December 30, 2009

AUSTRALIA'S police commissioners have warned of dangerous gaps in airport security, accusing federal law enforcement agencies of failing to share vital criminal intelligence and undermining efforts to stamp out organised crime.

Less than a week after would-be suicide bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab boarded a plane despite warnings he had been radicalised, the commissioners have warned that the flow of information to state police is cumbersome, slow and not sufficient to support criminal investigations.

The criticisms come as the main screening system for airport employees, the aviation security identification cards, or ASIC system, came under fresh attack.

A parliamentary inquiry has been told the system is in such dire shape it is unable to automatically detect criminal convictions after a card has been issued or even guarantee a proper background check if a name has been misspelt.

In his submission to the federal parliamentary inquiry into organised crime in the maritime and security sectors, Victorian Police Commissioner Simon Overland complained of "fluctuating" levels of co-operation between Victorian police and other agencies responsible for airport security, such as the Australian Federal Police. "Frequency of reporting is intermittent and mainly directed to specialist areas within Victoria Police," Mr Overland said.

Related Coverage .. in case of interest in more .. inside ..

* ASIO: Probe into Aussie bomb link
* SECURITY: US overturns last-hour air seat restriction
* DAVID AARONOVITCH: Even failed terrorists are threat
* AFP defends record on sharing with states The Australian, 2 days ago
* Rural flight security tightened Daily Telegraph, 15 Dec 2009
* ASIC silenced on banned executives The Australian, 26 Nov 2009
* Watchdog staff did 'very little' Courier Mail, 23 Nov 2009
* Ratings agencies face licence blitz The Australian, 12 Nov 2009

"Victoria Police receive limited information in relation to organised crime at Victoria's airports and ports."

What information was received was of limited value.

"Most of this information is of intelligence value and does not contain sufficient information to support a full investigation," Mr Overland said.

Western Australia's Police Commissioner, Karl O'Callaghan, was equally blunt, accusing federal law enforcement agencies of failing to share information.

He said the flow of information from state to federal authorities was "simple and unhindered by process".

"In reverse, however, the flow of intelligence remains cumbersome and administratively slow," Mr O'Callaghan said.

These shortcomings sometimes prevented police acting in a "dynamic and spontaneous" way, he warned.

Responsibility for policing Australia's 11 airports is shared between the AFP and the state police services, although Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor has pledged that within three to five years the AFP will assume sole responsibility.

Yesterday, Mr O'Connor defended those arrangements.

"Whilst there are strong security arrangements in place at our major airports, there's no doubt if we are able to have sworn Australian Federal Police officers at all major airports, at the 11 major airports in this country, we will see better co-ordination across jurisdictions," Mr O'Connor said.

The inquiry's most damning criticism was reserved for the ASIC system, universally regarded by police as cumbersome and ineffective. Anyone requiring unescorted access to the secure areas of security-controlled airports must have an ASIC card.

CrimTrac, the federal agency responsible for sharing information among police services, said the system was rife with problems.

"The use of aliases, spelling, typing and phonetic errors, anglicisation of names . . . could potentially result in a person's criminal record not being detected or being wrongly attributed to an individual," the agency said.

Even name changes could go unnoticed with the Office of Births, Deaths and Marriages not always passing on name changes to police. Nor is there any "live" checking of the ASIC system, meaning authorities are not automatically notified if a cardholder has been convicted of a serious offence after the background check has been done and the card issued. The system is administered by AusCheck, part of the Attorney-General's Department.

A similar system, maritime security identification cards, is in place for Australia's ports.

In June, it was reported that about 10 per cent of the 33,644 people with ASICs had been convicted of a criminal offence, with only 148 applications denied.

The MSIC figure was higher, with about 20 per cent of the 12,552 cardholders guilty of a crime and only 41 denied cards.

People convicted of crimes such as drug trafficking or terrorist offences are not eligible for an ASIC, although they can appeal if their application is denied.

Committee chairman Labor senator Steve Hutchins acknowledged there were major problems.

"There is a growing concern that there appears to be not the level of scrutiny
for organised crime that law enforcement agencies would like," he said.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/afp-secrets-undermine-air-safety/story-e6frg6nf-1225814549094

HNY, Peg.