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Show 'T'HE balance sheet of crime never gets so heavy as during times of recession or depression, a fact which might seem to underscore under-score the announcement that the Department of Justice is setting out on an intensified, long range program against organized crime in the nation. As announced by Attorney General Gen-eral William P. Rogers, the plan reflects the thinking of experts such as J. Edgar Hoover, Director, Direc-tor, Federal Bureau of Investiga tion; Harry J. Anslinger, Commissioner Commis-sioner of Narcotics; and Lt. Gen. Joseph M. Swing. Commissionei of Immigration and Naturalization. Naturaliza-tion. The plan calls for the concentration concentra-tion of information and investigative investiga-tive effort on the racketeers and hoodlums in this country with the highest priority given to a hundred hun-dred of the top racketeers. Information Infor-mation will be gathered from each of the cooperating investigating agencies and will be analyzed by lawyers of the criminal division. Malcolm Anderson, recently appointed ap-pointed Assistant Attorney General Gen-eral for the Criminal Division. Department De-partment of Justice, will direct this combined efToit. The organized Crime and Racketeering Rack-eteering Section of the Criminal Division will be expanded and strengthened. To give initial impetus impe-tus to the program, a special group, including several former Assistant United States Attorneys, headed by Milton Wessel of New York, will be added to the Division. The Federal Bureau of Investigation Investi-gation will Investigate the federal crimes within its jurisdiction, the principal statutes being Hobbs Anti-racketeering Act, Obstruction of Justice, Extortion, and Interstate Inter-state Fraud by Wire. Also the liaison liai-son with local police that the KB I has established through the National Na-tional Police Academy and the FBI laboratory is expected to be of aid in cooperation in the field. The Treasury, with its various investigative agencies, will give full cooperation. Many offenses committed by racketeers fall within with-in the investigative authority of the Bureau of Narcotics, the Internal In-ternal Revenue Service, and the Secret Service. The special group wiii fust analyze an-alyze the pool of information on the 100 top hoodlums now available from all the investigative agencies. agen-cies. Thereafter they will request additional investigation along lines suggested by the examination and they are authorized to request the convening of an investigatory grand jury This is not planned to supplant the work now being clone by the United States Attorneys in the field or the work of any investigative inves-tigative agency or their techniques, tech-niques, but rather to implement that work. |