[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 103 (Monday, July 23, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1394-E1395]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          TRIBUTE TO THE NAVAL CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIVE SERVICE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JIM SAXTON

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 23, 2001

  Mr. SAXTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to an 
outstanding organization. The responsibilities of this highly regarded, 
but little known agency cover the waterfront, from counterintelligence 
to criminal investigations, from force protection to infrastructure 
protection. They are the protectors of our protectors.
  I am referring to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS)--on 
watch to protect and serve sailors, Marines, and their families, 
wherever they may be, whether it's Chicago, Illinois; Split, Croatia; 
or a ship in the Persian Gulf.
  Recently, the outstanding efforts of the NCIS were highlighted in a 
case that has hit very close to home for those of us who live and work 
in the Washington, DC, area. A Navy sailor, a rising star, a beloved 
daughter, Lea Brown was abruptly taken from our midst in a vicious 
killing in Fort Washington.
  The Washington, DC, Field Office of the NCIS dedicated over 30 agents 
to the case, developing leads within hours that led to the arrest of 
several suspects by the Prince George's County Police Department. The 
clear message to criminals preying on sailors and Marines is, ``You 
will be caught; you will be brought to justice.'' I know that I join 
the men and women of the naval service, as well as those of Prince 
Georges County, Maryland, in expressing my thanks for the tireless 
efforts of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
  Mr. Speaker, I wish to enclose this article from the Washington Times 
and submit my congratulations to the men and women of NCIS for a job 
well done.

               [From the Washington Times, July 7, 2001]

       Naval Investigative Service Works Fast With Other Agencies

                           (By Brian DeBose)

       The Washington Field Office of the Naval Criminal 
     Investigative Service (NCIS) is no stranger to working with 
     local and federal police agencies.
       Most recently NCIS, the criminal investigation arm of the 
     U.S. Navy, is working with Prince George's County police on a 
     high-profile homicide case that revealed an organized crime 
     ring in Fort Washington.
       The NCIS was investigating the disappearance of Navy Petty 
     Officer Lea Anne Brown, as a missing persons case when Prince 
     George's police found her body and that of her boyfriend, 
     Michael Patten, June 12 in Accokeek.
       When the connection between the two cases was made, Prince 
     George's police immediately contacted NCIS Special Agent 
     Frank O'Donnell. ``We had as many as 30 to 35 agents working 
     on the case from day one when for us, it was a missing 
     persons case,'' said Mr. O'Donnell, who led the NCIS aspect 
     of the investigation.
       The NCIS has a global jurisdiction with 915 agents in 13 
     field offices around the world. More than half of all its 
     cases are done in collaboration with another law enforcement 
     agency, said NCIS spokesman Paul O'Donnell, who is not 
     related to Frank O'Donnell. ``We would not usually have 35 
     agents working on one case, but with this case, because of 
     the heinous nature of the crime and our outrage, we wanted to 
     devote

[[Page E1395]]

     as much manpower as we could,'' said Albert W. Billington, 
     special agent in charge of the Washington field office.
       Petty Officer Brown, 24, was listed as missing June 11 
     after her commanding officer called NCIS to report the young 
     woman had missed checks and had not shown up for work.
       The next day a Prince George's County detective called 
     Frank O'Donnell, who was heading up the missing persons 
     investigation, to tell him police may have found her body and 
     a man's body.
       Prince George's police moved quickly on the case, Mr. 
     Billington said, and with the help of NCIS computer experts 
     were able to track credit- and debit-card usage, and conduct 
     surveillance and searches of the suspects' and the victims' 
     homes.
       On June 27, Prince George's police arrested five men in 
     connection with the killings. Marco Scutchings, 18; Robert 
     Odum Jr., 23; Cortez Carroll, 22; Eric Thomas, 22; and Aaron 
     Hollingsworth, 18, await preliminary hearings scheduled for 
     July 26 and 27. The five men beat the couple and stuffed them 
     in the trunk after a botched carjacking, according to police 
     reports. The two later were shot execution-style and their 
     bodies left in Accokeek, police said.
       Twenty members of the NCIS investigation team are still 
     working on processing evidence through forensics, conducting 
     surveillance and interviews and searching residences.

     

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