Abbreviation OCCB Employees 1,600 | Formed 1971 | |
Superseding agency New York City Police Department Legal personality Governmental: Government agency General nature Law enforcement
Civilian agency | ||
The NYPD Organized Crime Control Bureau (NYPD OCCB) is one of the ten bureaus that form the New York Police Department. The Bureau is charged with the investigation and prevention of organized crime within New York City.
Contents
The Organized Crime Control Bureau is headed by Bureau Chief Thomas P. Purtell.
History
Formed after the Knapp Commission investigations into police corruption, all investigations within the bureau are conducted by specially structured teams, in an effort to reduce the chance of corruption.
Following the 2008 Mumbai attacks, officers from the OCCB were trained in the use of Ruger Mini-14s to provide support to the Emergency Service Unit in case of a similar situation arising in New York City.
OCCB was disbanded in March 2016. In each of the 5 Patrol Boroughs there’s going to be an investigations chief and reporting to that investigations chief is going to be the precinct detective squads. All the investigative entities are going to move to the chief of detectives office. ‘Basically, we’re eliminating the Organized Crime Control Bureau.”...says the Chief of the Department, James O'Neill.
Organization
Overview
The Organized Crime Control Bureau has numerous units and sub-units that investigate matters such as organized auto larceny rings, unlawful firearms, and prostitution. It is involved in using the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) to search and destroy organized criminal activities and seize property and vehicles. The Organized Crime Control Bureau utilizes undercover police officers to infiltrate various criminal organizations. The Organized Crime Control Bureau has been effective against the Italian Mafia, "the westies" of the Irish mob, Chinese Mafia, East German Mafia, and Russian Mafia organized criminal elements. The Organized Crime Control Bureau's Joint Organized Crime Task Force works in cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation's New York Field Division (the largest FBI office in the US).