*EPF308 11/13/2002
Text: U.S. Offers Reward for Information on Terrorist Financing
(Government to pay up to $5 million for information, say officials) (960)

The Bush administration will offer up to $5 million for information that helps law enforcement officials stop the flow of money to terrorists and the networks that support them, Treasury Under Secretary for Enforcement Jimmy Gurule says.

In a joint press conference November 13, Gurule and State Department Coordinator for Counterterrorism Francis Taylor said the reward would be offered for information leading to the dismantling of any system used to finance a terrorist organization, and for information leading to the arrest or conviction of those who planned or aided an act of terrorism against U.S. persons or property.

"Our strategy is simple: international terrorism is financed by money sent to terrorists from sources around the world; thus, we must disrupt and stop that flow of money," Gurule said.

The United States has also launched a public information campaign to publicize the reward program, using posters, flyers and paid advertisements, Gurule said. He added that the government is seeking the cooperation of trade associations representing banks, convenience stores and others to help raise awareness.

Gurule said the program might help investigators "gain new information and insights into how terrorist financiers are moving money for deadly purposes."

Following the September 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the United States launched a campaign to cut off terrorists from their sources of money around the world. Gurule said the campaign had succeeded in freezing about $113 million in terrorist assets, but stressed that much more work needs to be done.

"The money trail can be very difficult to follow," Gurule said. The new rewards program provides a way to "invigorate our strategy," he added.

Money for the initiative will come from the long-standing "Rewards for Justice" program, which is administered by the State Department. That program, created by a 1984 law, has paid out more than $9.5 million to 23 people for information that has led directly to the disruption of planned terrorist acts and the prosecution of terrorist, Taylor said.

He said the Rewards for Justice program had contributed to the arrest of Ramzi Yousef, the convicted mastermind in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. "Thanks to information provided by a brave informant, Yousef was arrested and convicted of his terrorist crimes. This is a scenario we want to see repeated over and over again. And I can assure you that it has, and it will again," Taylor said.

More information on Treasury's Terrorist Financing Rewards Program is available online at: http://www.treas.gov/rewards/

Following is the text of Gurule's statement to reporters:

(begin text)

U.S. Department of the Treasury
Under Secretary for Enforcement Jimmy Gurule

Moments after terrorists attacked our nation, President Bush told the American people that we will direct every resource at our command to win the war against terrorists: every means of diplomacy; every tool of intelligence; every instrument of law enforcement; every financial influence.

Today, the United States is turning to one of its most effective tools against terrorism -- the Rewards for Justice Program -- to fight the war against terrorism financing. Today, we are offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the dismantling of any system or scheme used to finance a terrorist organization and information leading to the arrest or conviction of those who planned or aided in any act of terrorism against U.S. persons or property.

President Bush has made it perfectly clear that stopping terrorism starts with stopping the flow of money. Our strategy is simple: international terrorism is financed by money sent to terrorists from sources around the world; thus, we must disrupt and stop that flow of money. This program will help us gain new information and insights into how terrorist financiers are moving money for deadly purposes. We will then use this information to uncover terrorist support networks and to starve the terrorists of funding.

Let me get right down to how this program works: If you have any information about individuals or organizations that finance terrorists and you are located within the United States, call 1-866-867-8300. If you are outside the United States, contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate. Responses are kept strictly confidential.

This campaign -- as part of the existing "Rewards for Justice Program" -- will only work if we raise the public's overall awareness and understanding.

Accordingly, beginning today, across the United States, and around the world, a massive global advertising campaign to circulate information on this new program begins. In addition, on the back of every poster and inside every brochure we distribute, as well as on our web site, will be "red flags" on terrorist financing.

The materials we have developed identify both illicit sources and types of suspicious transactions, which may be connected to terrorist financing. Copies of these materials will be provided for you today. Later this afternoon they will be posted on numerous U.S. government websites - including the White House, Treasury, and State Departments and, in time, all our U.S. embassies. This campaign will be advertised vigorously. We will use posters, flyers, paid advertisements, the internet, and any other venue we feel is appropriate. In addition, among other activities -- we will ask the trade associations which represent banks, convenience stores, pawn shops and other germane industries to inform their memberships about this program. We are calling on the front lines of this war on terrorist financing to unite against the common scourge of blood money.

As President Bush has said, we're making progress in this different kind of war. The enemy we seek hides in caves and operates in the dark alleys of the world, yet slowly but surely we're dismantling the terrorist network. With the public's help, this program will help us protect the homeland by hunting these killers down, one at a time, and bringing them to justice.

(end text)

(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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