New Delhi, Jun 11 (PTI): America First does not mean America alone, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation will “leave no stone unturned” to hunt down and bring to justice those who would harm the US and its allies, FBI Co-Deputy Director Andrew Bailey has said.
He made the remarks during a virtual press briefing on Wednesday on the subject of industrial-scale scam compounds, nihilistic violent extremism and transnational narcotics trafficking.
Nihilistic violent extremism (NVE) is violence motivated by a hatred of society and a drive to cause its collapse through indiscriminate chaos. NVE members advocate for destruction across the world by glorifying mass killers, promoting animal cruelty and urging self-harm.
“I’m here to discuss three of the most significant threats facing the world today. And those are industrial-scale scam compounds, nihilistic violent extremism and transnational narcotics trafficking. While these threats victimise Americans daily, their deadly impact across Southeast Asia is growing at an exponential rate,” Bailey said.
He said scam compounds steal families’ hard-earned life savings with ruthless vigour.
“Online extremists, such as NVEs, cowardly seek to harm our children by preying upon their vulnerabilities, and cartels and their state sponsors of drug trafficking poison people for ill-gotten profit,” he said.
These criminals don’t care what flag their victims live under. They target Americans and Southeast Asians alike. They profit from misery regardless of national identity, he said.
“And we’re at an inflection point. Humanity is pleading for help. And the FBI, along with our invaluable foreign partners, is leading the way. We’re taking the fight directly to where these criminal enterprises operate because the best way to protect the American people is to confront these threats at their source.
“The best way to defeat transnational threats is through time-tested and trusted transnational partnerships,” Bailey asserted.
The co-deputy director of the FBI said when President Donald Trump assumed office, he said: “We will focus on America First”.
“But America First does not mean America alone. And this FBI, under the leadership of Director Kash Patel, will leave no stone unturned to hunt down and bring to justice those that would harm America and her allies,” Bailey said.
He also spoke on the issue of transnational narcotics trafficking, specifically of fentanyl.
“Fentanyl is rapidly becoming the deadliest narcotic in history. It’s killing Americans at a devastating rate and it doesn’t stop at our borders. In the last year alone, the FBI seized 2,250 kilograms of fentanyl.
“To put it in perspective, that’s enough fentanyl to kill more than 178 million Americans. That’s more than half the population of the United States. The cartels and state sponsors responsible for trafficking this poison don’t care who dies, they care only about profits,” he underlined.
The FBI official underlined that the agency is “aggressively targeting” every link in the fentanyl supply chain.
“We’re working with partners throughout Asia to identify and destroy the precursor chemicals that fuel this crisis before they ever reach cartel laboratories. We’re supporting sanctions, enforcement actions, intelligence sharing and we’re targeting the criminal networks that profit from death,” Bailey said.
“To those trafficking in fentanyl, I will say this: the FBI, through its new anti-terrorism authorities provided by President Trump and his administration, will tirelessly work shoulder to shoulder with every one of our law enforcement partners globally to bring to bear the full might of our combined lawful authorities to neutralise you,” he said.
Bailey said whether it is about scam compounds, NVE, or fentanyl trafficking, the FBI’s mission is clear.
“We will protect the American people. We will defend our homeland. And we will take the fight directly to those who threaten us. The threats are global. The criminals are ruthless. But our partnerships throughout Southeast Asia are ironclad. And together, we will make America and the world safer,” he said. PTI KND DIV DIV
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