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GAO-02-276R 1 (2002-02-13)

handle is hein.gao/gaocrptaolw0001 and id is 1 raw text is: 



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        Accountability * Integrity * Reliability
United States General Accounting Office
Washington, DC 20548





                                   February 13, 2002

                                   The Honorable Jeff Sessions
                                   United States Senate

                                   Subject: The Drug Enforcement Administration's Reporting of Arrests

                                   Dear Senator Sessions:

                                   The mission of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is to enforce
                                   U.S. laws and regulations regarding controlled substances and to help
                                   bring to justice those involved in growing, manufacturing, or distributing
                                   controlled substances destined for illicit traffic in the United States. To
                                   accomplish its mission, DEA has 21 domestic divisional offices as well as
                                   57 foreign country offices. Furthermore, DEA often works with other
                                   federal, state, local, and foreign law enforcement agencies to accomplish
                                   its mission.

                                   Over the past year, allegations have been made that, in an attempt to
                                   obtain more resources, DEA's Caribbean Division had taken credit for
                                   arrests that had no connection to drug violations or in which DEA played
                                   no role. DEA's Office of Inspections confirmed the allegations of over-
                                   reporting of arrests in late 1999 during its on-site inspections at DEA
                                   offices within the Caribbean Division. You asked us to assess whether this
                                   problem was more than an isolated incident. This letter covers our review
                                   of DEA's (1) policies for counting drug-related arrests; (2) process for
                                   counting drug-related arrests when there is joint participation involving
                                   other federal, state, local, or foreign law enforcement agencies; (3) use of
                                   drug-related arrest data in developing its budget; (4) internal control
                                   procedures for ensuring the validity of its reported drug-related arrest
                                   data; and (5) reports for on-site compliance inspections performed during
                                   fiscal years 2000 and 2001, as well as the inspection report of the
                                   Caribbean Division from late 1999.



Results in Brief                   According to DEA's policies and procedures, to claim credit for drug-
                                   related arrests, DEA agents must have direct involvement in domestic
                                   arrests and provide substantial assistance to host-country law
                                   enforcement officials in foreign arrests. DEA's Agents Manual defines


GAO-02-276R DEA's Reporting of Arrests


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