HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unveiled the new home of Exodus Command Center South & National Academy for Advanced Training and Leadership. HSI staff and leaders, along with congressman Dale Strong gathered Tuesday to celebrate this partnership. "This is the place it needs to be," Strong said. "You look at what home Homeland Security Investigation does for not only here in this area, but for all over our country and the world, this is phenomenal."
Staffed with subject matter experts, EXCOM-South will protect national security by allowing HSI to expand its partnerships to combat the illicit acquisition of sensitive U.S. military weapons, technology, and intelligence, and to dismantle unlawful procurement networks. The HSI National Academy will provide cutting-edge training and leadership opportunities, to conduct complex criminal investigations in today’s rapidly evolving environment, for HSI personnel and law enforcement partners from around the world.
Steve Francis, executive associate director of HSI shared what having this facility in Huntsville means to the organization. "It's Homeland Security Investigations response to counter-proliferation investigations, supporting our field efforts as it relates to Russian sanctions," Francis shares." We anticipate on bringing in over 150 federal employees here. We're looking at bringing over 2,000 individuals that will touch Huntsville through the national academy and through Exodus Command Center South, so we're excited about that."
Those 2,000 individuals will be trained in all facets of national security including areas that often hard to see. "Basically, its all-advanced training, no matter what the discipline is," Patrick McElwain, Executive Associate Director of International Operations for HSI shares. "We're able to bring in our partners both at HSI and our state, local, federal and international partners, and bring them in under one facility for training purposes, everything from cyber to financial investigations to any other area you could think of."
When it comes to things we can see, they spoke to current threats going on here in the U.S. like the mysterious Chinese balloons seen recently." There's no doubt what China is doing to our country, this is considered a threat," Congressman Strong shares. "But I believe in our district, people are concerned about the southern border. they're concerned about fentanyl. they're concerned about heroin and everything that comes with it.
McElwain also sites fentanyl as a major issue and highlights the rise of organized crime groups. "Obviously the fentanyl piece is a huge concern for the United States. We've seen a strong uptick in nation states being involved in organized crime, using organized crime groups to obviously obtain items that they normally can't get. So, for us, we continue to do the job that we set out to do."