Pubdate: Sat, 11 Apr 2009
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2009 The Vancouver Sun
Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Authors: Mike De Souza and Kelly Sinoski

CRACKDOWN ON GANGS AT AIRPORTS, PORTS

100,000 Workers Across Canada Will Be Subject To Detailed Criminal 
Background Checks

Tens of thousands of workers at B.C. airports and ports are among 
100,000 people nationwide who may be affected by a security crackdown 
announced by the Conservative government.

The initiative comes through a new deal signed this week by the 
federal Transport Department and the RCMP to weed out organized-crime 
operatives from restricted areas, Canwest News Service has learned.

The agreement would improve information-sharing between the two 
agencies and allow the RCMP to conduct detailed background checks on 
employees applying for new security passes or renewals. The deal is 
intended to improve the security of both passengers and cargo.

Sgt. Shinder Kirk, of B.C.'s Integrated Gang Task Force, said Friday 
he wasn't aware of the initiative but applauded any moves to tighten 
security to prevent illegal cargo from entering or leaving the city. 
He noted that Metro Vancouver, as a major port city, is extremely 
vulnerable because of its connections to Asia, its proximity to the 
U.S. border and its growing international airport.

All of this is partly to blame for the slew of gang violence here, he 
said, as gangsters wrestle for market share of the drug trade.

"We are known for not only our marijuana, but imports of cocaine and 
designer drugs such as ecstasy, which is produced here and exported," 
Kirk said.

He said the Integrated Gang Task Force continues to chip away at the 
gang situation in Metro but noted the investigations take time. The 
Surrey Six gangland slaying investigation, for example, took 18 
months before any charges were laid.

As organized crime gangs evolve, Kirk said, investigators are 
learning new tactics.

For instance, B.C. and Mexico last month agreed to share more 
information about multinational organized crime groups smuggling 
drugs across borders. The province has also agreed to add more police 
to combat the almost daily gunplay on the streets.

Kirk said the latest move by the federal government will also help. 
"You're talking about a puzzle. Every piece that is completed can 
only be beneficial," he said.

"It'll certainly improve the level of security and mitigate the 
export of drugs through these avenues."

Kate Donegani, spokeswoman for Vancouver International Airport, said 
comprehensive checks are already done in some sectors of the 
operation, but the airport would cooperate with any new security 
measures. About 26,000 people work on Sea Island and 4,000 for the 
Airport Authority.

Port Metro Vancouver has also had security background clearance 
checks in place at its container ports and "anywhere there's 
international trade" for the past few years, Port Authority 
spokeswoman Ann McMullin said.

She couldn't say exactly how many people would be affected at Port 
Metro Vancouver, but the port accounts for 45,000 direct jobs in this 
region, with 3,300 jobs in Delta, 5,600 jobs on the North Shore and 
more than 20,000 jobs in Vancouver. This doesn't include the Port of 
Prince Rupert.

Transport Minister John Baird pledged to have the new deal signed 
last month, after Auditor-General Sheila Fraser warned in a report 
that members of organized crime and other shady characters were 
infiltrating these ports of entry because of poor communication 
between Transport Canada and the police.

Fraser noted that a pass for restricted areas had been issued to a 
person with assault and weapons convictions, and who was also under 
investigation for a murder related to drug-smuggling at a large airport.

In 2004, The Vancouver Sun discovered that a secret 2001 report by 
the Organized Crime Agency of B.C. identified by name five full 
members of the Hells Angels who worked at Vancouver and Delta ports, 
along with more than 30 known associates.

In a speech to provincial justice ministers in Vancouver in 1999, Bev 
Busson -- then chief of the OCA, and now head of the RCMP in B.C. -- 
left little doubt about the influence of the Angels at the ports.

"[The] Hells Angels in B.C. ... control much of the production and 
export of high-grade indoor-grown marijuana and the importation and 
distribution of cocaine," said a copy of Busson's speech obtained by The Sun.

"Millions of dollars change hands in this import-export business. 
Smuggling methods are diverse and include unchecked containers at the 
Port of Vancouver, an area under the control of the Hells Angels."

The RCMP released a report last year that warned there were more than 
60 employees with links to organized crime at the country's eight 
largest airports, and many organized gangs were found to be using the 
airports for some of their activities.

But Fraser's report said Transport Canada was withholding airport 
information from the police because of individual privacy concerns, 
while the RCMP was reluctant to work with the transport department 
after the Mounties were criticized for sharing information that led 
to the deportation from the United States of Maher Arar, a Canadian 
citizen who was subsequently tortured in Syria.

A public inquiry later cleared Arar of all allegations and blamed 
Canadian officials for his ordeal.

Government officials were not immediately able to explain how the new 
Transport Canada-RCMP agreement would improve individual privacy 
risks, nor could they provide cost estimates of running the background checks.

But, under the agreement, the RCMP would be able to run the names of 
employees seeking security passes in restricted areas through 10 
different criminal databases, which include information about 
complaints, victims, suspects, and other criminal intelligence 
information. An Interpol database would also be consulted.

Transport Canada issues about 45,000 security passes a year to new 
applicants and existing employees who are seeking a five-yearly renewal.

The new deal follows a recent test carried out by Baird and Liberal 
Senator Colin Kenny, who were able to make their way onto restricted 
areas of Pearson International Airport in Toronto without being 
approached by security.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom