FIA, Islamabad Police to be given access to Interpol data

Islamabad : The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Islamabad Police, and three investigative units have been linked with Interpol to obtain technical assistance and access the required data regarding global issues of crimes.

A ceremony was held for the signing of agreements between the National Central Bureau-Interpol Islamabad, Pakistan (NCB-Pakistan) and three Law Enforcement Units of FIA as well as the Islamabad Police at FIA Headquarters on Friday, 27 January 2023. The ceremony was chaired by the Director General, FIA and attended by the Inspector General of Police, Islamabad Capital Territory, Dr. Akbar Nasir Khan, Malik Sikandar Hayat, Director, NCB-Pakistan, FIA officers as well as a three-member Interpol delegation led by Assistant Director, Interpol Headquarters Tariq Malik.

Speaking on the occasion, Director General ((DG) of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Mohsin Hassan Butt, urged the law enforcement agencies in the country to make use of Interpol’s tools and capabilities in their fight against crime. “Only by employing the latest technologies and strengthening our international police linkages, can the police in Pakistan effectively meet the challenges of modern-day law enforcement”, he averred.

Praising the critical role Interpol is playing in supporting police forces around the world, Director General FIA said on the occasion that the agreements would enable the beneficiary agencies to access Interpol databases in real-time which would help them in fighting crime, especially emerging crimes such as child sexual exploitation and cyber-enabled financial crime. The Director NCB Islamabad, Pakistan briefed the participants of the ceremony about the progress made by the NCB-Pakistan last year regarding the modernization of the NCB to improve its effectiveness in coordination with all Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) in Pakistan with assistance from Interpol headquarters and other NCBs. He also apprised the participants about the databases to which LEAs will get access as a result of the agreements being signed. He added that agreements between NCB with other law enforcement agencies, including provincial police forces, are expected to be signed in the near future which will allow access to different crime databases.

The Interpol delegation gave a briefing about the “iARMS” database which it said can help police check the proliferation of illicit arms in the context of the recent developments in the region. With more than a million records, iARMS can assist in identifying firearms, trafficking patterns, and smuggling routes.