SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (USTCNS) --- Until recently, most people living in America felt safe from harm.
The nightmare that befell the eastern seaboard on Sept. 11 shocked the world and caused an entire nation to mourn. The entire surreal scenario appears to be a horror novel - playing out before our eyes. The problem is…we've got a long way to go before we finish the book and no one knows how it will end.
The reality of the situation is we're not invincible. The threat has proven it can come from any direction…at any time. It can be as small as a letter bomb or as large as a commercial airline.
Terrorists have proven they can hit us with organized, simultaneous attacks and they can be very patient…waiting for just the right moment to strike. The only way to stop them is to find the threat early, identify all the players and stop them before they execute their plan. Air Force
Office of Special Investigations has the stick for this responsibility in the Air Force.
This fact may surprise some of you. Most Air Force personnel think AFOSI only conducts investigations when in fact, we support four different command priorities: solving violent crimes impacting the Air Force, combating threats to our information systems and technology, detecting and deterring acquisition fraud, and most importantly in this case, exploiting counterintelligence activities in support of force protection.
This means we use every tool available to collect and analyze information, which will help us find "threats" to Air Force personnel and resources. Whether in a deployed environment or the perceived safety of a home base in the states, AFOSI's primary responsibility is to be off the
base, beyond the safety of the fence, searching for any and all clues to help us track down individuals who mean you harm. That's why our command motto is "Eyes of the Eagle."
However, we need your help. We do not know whether the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were isolated attacks. Terrorists proved to the entire world they are a patient and well-organized threat. Did they act alone? Certainly not. Are there others still around waiting for their chance to make the evening news? Quite possibly. Are any living in the area, and do they intend to target Air Force families and, or military targets? I wish we knew. There is hope and it depends on you.
Every man and woman serving and supporting the Air Force can join our ranks and become the "Eyes of the Eagle." Our special agents are aggressively pursing each and every lead, tracking down suspicious activity. We don't have enough "eyes" to do it alone.
We and the citizens of this area need you to be on the lookout for any and all suspicious activity. This could be a car or a van that you know doesn't belong in the area. It could be the way a group of foreign nationals avoid eye contact or go out of their way to not capture someone's attention. It could be an overheard discussion in a restaurant or bar where someone is asking about the security of an Air Force base or Army post. It could be when a foreigner in a bar doesn't want to show anyone valid photo identification. It could simply be the man who is standing in one place too long, watching (surveilling?) military activities or security entry procedures. If you see anything strange where the players don't look right, or you get a feeling in your stomach that tells you something isn't as it seems, call your local AFOSI detachment.
When you make your observations, make sure you capture some critical information about the person or the event. Write down the vehicle make, model, and color if you can. At a minimum try and get a license plate. Write down a good description of the individual to include: clothing,
hat, hair color and length, skin tone, glasses, facial hair, tattoos and jewelry or any other identifying information. This will aid in our ability to quickly respond and pursue the facts.
Even though the ethnicity of the terrorists in this case was "Arabic" and, or "Middle-Eastern," it does not mean every person of that ethnic background is a terrorist. Remember what happened to the Japanese citizens in the United States after the attack on Pearl Harbor? Ethnicity does not define the character within. It's the behavior that should send off warning signs. Focus on the behavior and keep a watchful eye.
Finally, I can't overstress "reporting" suspicious activity. Since the attacks on the east coast hundreds of witnesses have come forward and told the FBI they saw someone acting suspicious two weeks ago or saw a group of suspicious men gathering at a house back in July. Some of these "suspicious" men have now proven to be some of the terrorists involved in the commercial high-jackings. If only we had known then what we know now.
The truth is the terrorists didn't come into our country unnoticed. They didn't disappear from society. They lived among us for quite possibly extended periods of time and blended into our society. Hundreds of people saw and interacted with them on a daily basis. The only problem was most people talked themselves out of reporting "odd" behavior because it would be silly or trivial to report such minute oddities. Only now do they realize the consequences of doubting whether the information was important.
I promise you that no call to our office is trivial. We aggressively pursue every call because we want to make sure nothing bad happens on our watch, to our family, in our own backyard. We do not believe the crisis is over. We believe a real and credible threat exists with us today, within the very borders of our country and we need your help in finding them. If you see or hear anything suspicious on or off-base day or night call your Security Forces law enforcement desk. and your information will get directly passed to an AFOSI agent or call AFOSI directly.
(FROM AIR MOBILITY COMMAND PUBLIC AFFAIRS)
