For Immediate Release
June 23, 1999

Washington D.C.
FBI National Press Office

FBI Director Louis J. Freeh today announced that a team of 56 Federal Bureau of Investigation personnel--including Special Agents, crime scene investigators, scientists, and forensic experts--and four forensic specialists from the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) have been sent to Kosovo to begin searching for evidence of war crimes at two sites where the bodies of victims of alleged atrocities were found.

Director Freeh said "The personnel and their equipment were flown yesterday from Washington, D.C., to Macedonia aboard a U.S. Air Force plane. The contingent is scheduled to begin work tomorrow at two alleged massacre sites in the sector of Kosovo controlled by Italian Army troops who are part of the overall peace-keeping group."

Freeh said the total FBI contingent in Kosovo now totals 59 persons, including three sent earlier to handle advance logistics. The FBI investigative teams will be accompanied by prosecutors, investigators, and interpreters from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), which was created by the United Nations.

Other nations sending forensic teams to Kosovo include the United Kingdom, The Netherlands, France, Canada, Norway, and Sweden.

The formal request for the FBI to take part in the investigation of alleged war crimes in Kosovo was made by the ICTY. The request was supported by Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright, who sent it to the Department of Justice where it was approved by Attorney General Janet Reno, pursuant to the authority found in Title 28, United States Code, Section 533.

The FBI was asked by the ICTY to investigate two alleged massacre sites in the town of Dakovica. The search sites were assigned to the FBI by the ICTY and are under the ICTY's jurisdiction. Evidence recovered by the FBI team will be turned over to the ICTY following completion of examinations at the sites and the FBI Laboratory.

Freeh said "This assistance will be used to support war crimes prosecutions by the ICTY of Slobodan Milosevic and four other persons whose indictment was announced by ICTY on May 27.

Freeh said he made the decision to commit FBI resources to the investigation "after carefully considering--first and foremost--the unique safety and security issues related to the mission and the imperative for the FBI to join in this critically important international endeavor.

"For over 50 years the FBI has taken part in important law enforcement investigations overseas, and I am proud that we are contributing to an effort that seeks to apply the rule of law and to bring justice to the horrible events that shocked and so profoundly affected people around the world," Freeh said.

"The Bureau's unparalleled expertise in the proper collection, preservation and development of evidence to ensure successful future arrests and prosecutions, and our singular forensic and laboratory capabilities, render us an indispensable part of this international effort. The FBI is unique in the capability to provide this support," Freeh said.

Freeh said the FBI Headquarters supervisor of the Bureau's team in Kosovo is Neil J. Gallagher, an FBI Assistant Director who is in charge of the National Security Division, in conjunction with Dr. Donald M. Kerr, the FBI Assistant Director in charge of the Laboratory Division.

The FBI personnel will investigate two crime scenes in Dakovica, including one with related locations. The FBI specialists will conduct these types of examinations:

• Establish exact location of crime scene.
• Photograph crime scene, bodies, and evidence.
• Map scenes of alleged crimes.
• Collect physical evidence.
• Examine bodies for indications of cause of death, indications of restraint or physical abuse, and preliminary identification of sex and age.
• Collect samples from bodies for possible identification using DNA techniques.
• Conduct other criminal and scientific examinations as needed.

The FBI personnel in Kosovo include evidence response team members specially trained in evidence collection and preservation, forensic explosives experts, forensic photographers, crime scene reconstruction experts, members of the Critical Incident Response Group who have security duties, a dentist with forensic experience, senior Special Agents who have taken part in complex investigations in other countries, and experts in command/control, logistics, and communications.

Along with FBI personnel, all necessary equipment was airlifted to Skopje, Macedonia, to support the FBI operations, including trucks, trailers, laboratory equipment, communications gear, tents, food, and medical supplies.

The Director of AFIP, Captain Glenn N. Wagner, U.S. Navy, said "AFIP has been a frequent contributor to the national effort, especially in the field of forensic science. The conditions in Kosovo, given the number of refugees and projected casualties, will be challenging to the consortium of forensic specialists taking part in this mission." AFIP staff members have particular expertise in identifying victims and determining a cause and manner of death.

The FBI said that its basic mission is evidence collection and not identification of victims. There will be close coordination between the FBI and AFIP personnel and the forensic teams sent to Kosovo by other nations under the ICTY auspices.

The primary security at the search sites will be provided by the United States Military Police. Mine-clearing operations and removal of any booby-traps will have been conducted at the sites prior to the FBI and AFIP beginning their work.

Prior to the FBI deployment, FBI personnel also were sent to The Hague for initial briefings and coordination with the ICTY, which has its headquarters there.

Director Freeh said he wanted to express the FBI's deep appreciation to Attorney General Janet Reno, the Department of State, and the Department of Defense for their support of the FBI's mission to Kosovo. Freeh said special thanks go to David J. Scheffer, Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues, and his staff; Cynthia Schneider, U.S. Ambassador to The Hague, and her staff; and Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen and his staff. Freeh said the FBI is also grateful for the superb work of the U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Army, and U.S. Air Force for their logistical, security, and other support for the Kosovo mission.

The FBI and AFIP have worked together before on a number of important cases, including bombings at the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia, the Federal building in Oklahoma City, and at the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. The Armed Forces Medical Examiner System of AFIP was created in 1988 and provides professional expertise and resources to the Department of Defense, other Federal agencies, and civilian medicine.

Kosovo - Sorting Clues from the Rubble