US embassy cable - 05SANSALVADOR2795

UNCLAS SAN SALVADOR 002795 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EFIN, ELAB, PHUM, SNAR, KCRM, KJUS, ES, INL 
SUBJECT: EL SALVADOR: INL MONTHLY ACTIVITIES REPORT FOR 
SEPTEMBER 2005 
 
 
1. (U) The following summarizes Embassy INL activities in 
September 2005.  Unless otherwise indicated, all statistics 
refer to the month of September 2005. 
 
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ILEA 
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2. (U) On September 20, Ambassador Barclay and Governance 
Minister Figueroa signed a bilateral agreement to establish 
an International Law Enforcement Academy in El Salvador.  The 
agreement has passed from President Saca to the National 
Assembly for ratification.  The GOES expects ratification 
within the next several weeks. 
 
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NARCOTICS INTERDICTION 
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3. (U) Operations:  Officers of the Anti-Narcotics Police 
(DAN) at the INL-constructed vehicle inspection facility in 
El Amatillo inspected 506 cars, 737 passenger buses, and 284 
commercial freight trucks.  In all operations throughout the 
country, the INL-supported DAN seized 24 kilograms of 
marijuana, two kilograms of cocaine, and 15 kilograms of 
heroin (see following paragraph), as well as arresting 63 
individuals for trafficking offenses. 
 
4. (U) Amatillo:  On September 5, DAN officers at Amatillo 
seized one kilogram of heroin hidden in the shoes of a 
Mexican national bus driver.  On September 15, they seized 14 
kilograms of heroin that was sewn into 27 pieces of clothing 
carried by two Mexican nationals.  (Note: Fifteen kilos of 
heroin has a U.S. street value of US$1.35 million.  INL paid 
US$320,000 to construct the Amatillo inspection facility. End 
Note.) 
 
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MONEY LAUNDERING 
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5. (U) Operations:  The INL-supported Financial 
Investigations Unit (FIU) received 29 Suspicious Activities 
Reports, opened 5 new investigations, and identified and 
removed 172 false dollar-denominated bills from circulation. 
No convictions were realized. 
 
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HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING AND TRANSIT SECURITY 
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6. (U) Operations:  The INL-supported Border Police 
(Fronteras) arrested 35 individuals for human smuggling and 
one person for trafficking in September.  Police operations 
rescued 25 minors in the process of being smuggled or 
trafficked.  No convictions for trafficking or smuggling were 
realized during the month. 
 
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ORGANIZED CRIME, RULE OF LAW, AND DEMAND REDUCTION 
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7. (U) Organized Crime:  In September, the PNC arrested 1437 
individuals for gang-related criminal activity.  Of these 
arrests, 20 percent of the cases were dismissed for lack of 
evidence, 65 percent are incarcerated awaiting trial, and 15 
percent were assigned alternative sentencing (community 
service).  60 gang members were killed due to gang-related 
violence. 
 
8. (U) Culture of Lawfulness: On September 27, INLOff met 
with program managers from the NGO National Strategy 
Information Center (NSIC) to discuss implementing the second 
phase of the Culture of Lawfulness (CoL) program in El 
Salvador.  NSIC plans to prepare eight additional Salvadoran 
"trainers" who will provide CoL training to 200 teachers at 
60 schools during FY-06.  This second phase of implementation 
will be funded by INL and CICAD. 
 
9. (U) Demand Reduction: INL sponsored the travel of the 
deputy director of the National Anti-Drug Commission to 
Canada to attend a CICAD conference on evaluating the 
effectiveness of demand reduction programs. 
Barclay