The AFP has strong, effective and valued relationships with NSW Police.
For example, for the past 20 years, the AFP/NSW Police Joint Counter Terrorism Team (JCTT) has worked seamlessly to help keep Australians safe. The AFP also works closely with NSW Police in relation to Sydney Airport, as well as protecting high office holders, Parliamentarians and places of significance in NSW.
As of Friday, November 10, the Office of the AFP Commissioner had not received official correspondence from the Office of NSW Commissioner stating that NSW Police would pull out of Phobetor, a joint target development Taskforce between the AFP, NSW Police and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission. In a few weeks, as stated under the agreement, the AFP would lead Phobetor. This is after NSW Police has lead Phobetor for two years.
If a joint AFP/NSW Police taskforce targeting illicit drug trafficking and transnational serious organised crime ends, the AFP will continue to seek positive meetings with NSW Police in a bid to restore a joint taskforce.
Joint taskforces on serious organised crime exist between the AFP, the Queensland Police Service and Victoria Police, and those joint taskforces have been extremely successful in combating serious criminals operating in, or targeting those states.
In the absence of a joint organised crime taskforce with NSW Police, the AFP will work productively with NSW Police, and focus on assisting a valued partner at every opportunity.
We actively share intelligence and crucial information with NSW Police and Australian Border Force, which are responsible for seizing drugs at the border.
Law enforcement is stronger when working together, and it will always be the focus and priority of the AFP to ensure there is a joint effort when combating crimes that affect every day Australians, whether in NSW or anywhere else in Australia.
That’s why the AFP always offers our world-leading capability, tech, forensics, intelligence and international reach to states and territories to assist in state or territory investigations.
The AFP leverages our wide-reaching and long-standing relationships with overseas law enforcement partners to help target offshore criminals targeting Australia. Given 70 per cent of the AFP’s high-value targets are offshore, these partnerships are a key strategy in ensuring Australia is a hostile environment to criminal networks.
The AFP acknowledges and congratulates NSW Police for working hard every day to keep the residents of NSW safe. As law enforcement agencies, our mission is foremost about protecting the community. The AFP continues to protect Australians and Australia’s interests.+
