Statement by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff on the Reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act

Release Date: 12/14/05 00:00:00

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: 202-282-8010
December 14, 2005

“I am pleased that the House has moved to reauthorize the Patriot Act and make many of its provisions permanent.  The Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has benefited significantly from the Patriot Act, resulting in the arrest of more than 155 individuals and 142 criminal indictments, over $25 million in illicit profits seized, and several unlicensed money transmittal businesses shut down.  The Patriot Act requires these businesses, or underground hawalas, to be registered with the federal government.  ICE targets these illegal operations and their underlying financial systems because terrorists and criminal organizations have used these methods in the past to transfer illicit funds with no questions asked to countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran.  I urge the Senate to join the House by voting to reauthorize the Patriot Act, and continue to equip federal law enforcement with proven tools in the global war on terror.”

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