J-LEG MOU signed to set up Multi-Agency Taskforce in Turks & Caicos 

By Dana Malcolm 

Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, May 30, 2023 – Exponential levels of irregular migration have forced the TCI to reinstate the Joint Law Enforcement Group (J-LEG) to oversee a larger multi agency framework. An MOU was signed on May 23rd to bring back the system.

“J-LEG” will be led by the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force (RTCIPF) with the backing of the National Security Council. It will act as the oversight body in support of a Multi-Agency Operational Compliance Taskforce (MOCT), the Government says.

MOCT will coalesce 17 law enforcement agencies in the country allowing information sharing between them and possible joint operations should the need arise. They include:

• The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force,
•  Immigration Department,
• National Security Secretariat,
• Customs Department,
• Environmental Health Department,
• Revenue Department,
• Crown Land Unit,
• Airports Authority,
• Ports Authority,
• Planning Department,
• National Insurance Board,
• Department of Motor Vehicles, Probation Service,
•  Department of Correction and Rehabilitation,
• TCI Regiment,
• Department of Environmental and Coastal Resources and the Fisheries and Maritime Department.

There have been continued joint operations especially with immigration and the police as well as the police and the regiment in recent times. Premier Washington Misick said this was just the tip of the iceberg.

“Their dedication speaks to what can be accomplished with a joined-up approach taken to address the challenges of irregular migration and other infractions of the TCI’s border. The increased criminal acts require us to work together.”

Acting Governor Anya Williams who attended the signing of the MOU said, “The aim and objective of J-LEG will be to develop strategies to: detect, prevent, interdict, disrupt, dismantle, and to deter criminal activities through coordinated intelligence-led operations with partner agencies, which is critical in addressing our national security concerns.”

The J-LEG was brought back with the creation of OPERATION PURSUIT which is also a multi-agency operation specifically geared at illegal migration.