The RISSProp database is a phenomenal tool for investigators.  Without access to it, I would not have been able to solve the case as quickly as I did.

~Detective J. T. Hoar, Fall River, Massachusetts, Police Department

The New England State Police Information Network (NESPIN), one of the six RISS Centers, developed a pawnshop database, known as the Regional Information Sharing Systems (RISS) Property and Recovery Tracking System (RISSProp), to meet a regional need to share pawn, scrap, secondhand, and other related data.  Investigators in the NESPIN region have experienced great success in solving burglaries, home invasion robberies, and other crimes, while effectively and efficiently identifying and recovering stolen items.  Law enforcement agencies in the other five RISS regions have also begun using RISSProp.  More than 13 states are now participating, with more than 1,800 shops reporting.  As of September 30, 2017, RISSProp contained more than 16,000,000 records. Thus, RISSProp has grown into one of RISS’s most valuable resources.  RISSProp is accessible via the RISS Secure Cloud (RISSNET). 

For additional information regarding RISS services and resources, including RISSProp, contact your in-region RISS Center. 

Information that is accurate, accessible, and complete enhances and informs conversations about policing,

~FBI Director Christopher Wray

On December 11, 2017, the FBI released information on more than 6 million criminal offenses that were submitted to the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) in 2016, which now includes hacking and identity theft as additions to the overall fraud offense category.  While NIBRS data is not yet nationally representative, 6,849 law enforcement agencies (about 37 percent of the country’s law enforcement agencies that participate in the UCR Program) contributed their data to the NIBRS 2016 report, a 201-agency increase from 2015.  By 2021, NIBRS is scheduled to become the national standard for crime reporting, replacing the Summary Reporting System.  NIBRS provides additional information and context for criminal offenses; when fully implemented, it will assist law enforcement agencies in using their resources efficiently and effectively.

DEA is fighting the opioid crisis on multiple levels, using every resource available to identify reckless doctors and rogue businesses that fuel addiction in our neighborhoods and communities.  We will continue to identify and hold accountable the most significant drug threats, using every tool at our disposal—administrative, civil and criminal—to fight the diversion of controlled substances.

~DEA Acting Administrator Robert W. Patterson

On November 9, 2017, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Los Angeles Field Division announced Operation Faux Pharmacy, a multipronged initiative aimed at attacking the opioid epidemic by targeting rogue pharmacies throughout southern California, Hawaii, and Nevada.  Over the last year, DEA investigations identified as many as 26 pharmacies in these areas that may have operated outside the bounds of legitimate medicine.  As part of this initiative, DEA special agents, diversion investigators, and intelligence analysts examined data that manufacturers and distributors report to DEA, Prescription Drug Monitoring Program information, and Health and Human Services data to determine those most likely to be operating as drug traffickers disguised as legitimate pharmacies.  As part of Operation Faux Pharmacy, 26 pharmacies were identified as potential violators of the Controlled Substances Act.

Today, 3D printing technology is widely available and relatively simple to use for both lawful and illicit purposes.  Criminals are taking advantage of the versatility of this technology.  Among the most worrying of its illicit uses is the creation of 3D-printed guns and other weapons.

A recent National Institute of Justice (NIJ) article titled The Next Generation of Crime Tools and Challenges: 3D Printing outlines how 3D printing technology both supports and challenges law enforcement.  3D printers can create a variety of highly customizable objects at relatively low cost.  Their applications are nearly endless.  Examples of the commercial application of 3D printing include, but are not limited to, manufacturing airplane and automotive parts, footwear, and medical and veterinary prosthetics.  The technology is widely available and relatively simple to use, and criminals will undoubtedly find more creative ways to use it.  The article includes an explanation of the technology and the illicit applications of 3D printing.

Since 2015, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has used National Terrorism Advisory System Bulletin to highlight the continuing terror threat to the U.S. Homeland.  The U.S. is engaged in a generational fight against terrorists who seek to attack the American people, our country, and our way of life. 

An informed, vigilant and engaged public remains one of our greatest assets to identify potential terrorists and prevent attacks.  The current NTAS bulletin was issued on November 9, 2017, and highlights details of the current terrorism threat to the U.S. homeland and U.S. government counterterrorism efforts.