Global Crime Surge Strains Unheralded Justice Department Unit

Even in better times, the Justice Department’s international unit would work around-the-clock, only to see the piles of requests for overseas evidence and fugitives keep growing.

Its pace often frustrated impatient prosecutors, who risk losing valuable information, witnesses, or arrests if they fail to seize on a time-sensitive tip, said several former DOJ attorneys.

And when the Office of International Affairs does navigate sensitive diplomatic relations to deliver a star witness or complex extradition to help secure a major conviction, the trial attorneys they assist gain the acclaim.

More recently, the longstanding difficulties confronting OIA appear to be exacerbated, according ...