Michigan IP Taskforce

In October 2022, the Michigan State Police (MSP) and the Michigan Attorney General’s Office (MIAG) created the Focused Organized Retail Crimes Enforcement Team (Task Force). Task Force investigators pursued large scale organized retail crime (ORC) groups that primarily targeted retail outlets in large urban centers in the state of Michigan. As the Task Force evolved it began to encounter large scale intellectual property crime (IPC)

In early 2023, the Task Force began to work closely with three federal law enforcement agency (LEA) partners: the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Working collaboratively with HSI, FBI, and the USPIS, the Task Force is seeking federal grant funds from the Intellectual Property Crime Enforcement program to fund sworn overtime investigations, training, software, equipment, and educational opportunities. The Task Force intends to work directly with the Portland (Oregon) Bureau Police (BOP) and Michigan State University to research and develop a Health & Safety IPC Enforcement and Community Outreach Education Program, which aims to highlight the Task Force’s holistic approach to the prevention of IPC through public education and outreach.