Wednesday`s Operation Pallial arrest in Connah`s Quay was spearheaded by the NCA, but who are they?

On Wednesday (Oct 16th) a 53 year old man was arrested in Connahs Quay, North Wales, on suspicion of sexual assault.

The offences are being investigated as part of Operation Pallial and were alleged to have taken place between 1984 and 1985 when the boy was aged between 12 and 14 years old.

The arrest was carried out by officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) dubbed the “British FBI” by the media, the NCA has replaced the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) in the UK.

The new agency became fully operational on 7 October 2013. 

It includes the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre as an individual command, and parts of the National Policing Improvement Agency.

Some of the responsibilities of the UK Border Agency relating to border policing also became part of the new agency.

“The NCA Director-General, Chief Constable Keith Bristow, has the power to direct other police chiefs to concentrate their resources where necessary, effectively making him the most senior police officer in the country” – Wikipedia

Keith Bristow, Director, UK National Crime Agency image – Wikipedia

The NCA has a much wider remit than its predecessors, with an additional focus on cyber crime, fraud and economic crime alongside the more familiar types of serious and organised criminal activity such as drugs, child sexual exploitation, human trafficking and firearms.

The NCA is leading the UK’s fight to cut serious and organised crime by building on the cutting-edge technologies and expertise of officers from its key predecessor organisations, including the Serious and Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) centre

The NCA responds on a 24/7 basis, targeting the criminals and groups posing the biggest risks to the UK.

It does this in three ways:

• by conducting its own operations
• by providing operational and specialist support to its partners’ operations
• by providing clear national leadership which ensures that UK law enforcement makes the best use of its collective resources and targets those most effectively

The organisation build a single comprehensive picture of serious and organised crime affecting the UK, drawing on information and intelligence from a wide range of sources.

The NCA delivers a national response through the four pillars of: 

• Pursue – identify and disrupt serious and organised crime by investigating and enabling the prosecution of those responsible
• Prevent – people from becoming involved in serious and organised criminal activity
• Protect – reduce the impact of serious and organised crime
• Prepare – strengthen protection against serious and organised crime

The NCA operate across the UK, respecting the devolution of policing in Scotland and Northern Ireland.