II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4067 

To provide for an annual report on the prosecution activities of the Coordinator for Caribbean Firearms Prosecutions of the Department of Justice. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 22, 2024 

Mr. MURPHY (for himself and Mr. KAINE) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To provide for an annual report on the prosecution activities 

of the Coordinator for Caribbean Firearms Prosecutions 

of the Department of Justice. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLES. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Caribbean Arms Traf5 ficking Causing Harm Act’’ or the ‘‘CATCH Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) According to a 2023 joint report by the 

9 Caribbean Community Implementation Agency for 

10 Crime and Security and the Small Arms Survey, the 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 4067 IS

1 average number of violent deaths in the Caribbean 

2 is nearly triple the global average. 

3 (2) According to the United Nations Office on 

4 Drugs and Crime, Caribbean countries accounted for 

5 6 of the world’s top 10 highest national murder 

6 rates in 2021. 

7 (3) Law enforcement officials in Haiti, Antigua 

8 and Barbuda, and Jamaica have identified Florida 

9 as a significant source of illicit firearms. 

10 (4) According to the United Nations, Caribbean 

11 countries do not manufacture firearms or ammuni12 tion, nor do they import such products on a large 

13 scale. 

14 (5) According to Bahamian officials, more than 

15 90 percent of firearms used in homicides and con16 fiscated by authorities in the Bahamas are traced to 

17 manufacturers and retailers in the United States. 

18 (6) In 2022, the Department of Homeland Se19 curity’s Homeland Security Investigations reported 

20 observing a significant increase in the quantity, cal21 iber and type of firearms being illegally trafficked to 

22 the Caribbean, including .50 caliber sniper rifles, 

23 .308 rifles, and a belt fed machine gun. 

24 (7) According to a 2023 assessment by United 

25 Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the flow of ilVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:22 Apr 09, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4067.IS S4067

ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 4067 IS

1 licit firearms into Haiti enables violent gangs and 

2 contributes to forced displacement throughout the 

3 country. 

4 (8) According to the Migration Policy Institute, 

5 there has been a dramatic increase in migration to 

6 the United States from Haiti in recent years, caused 

7 in part by widespread gang violence. 

8 (9) On June 25, 2022, President Joe Biden 

9 signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (Pub10 lic Law 117–159) into law, which created Federal 

11 criminal offenses for firearm trafficking and granted 

12 the government new authorities to prosecute these 

13 offenses. 

14 (10) On November 14, 2022, the Caribbean 

15 Community Implementation Agency for Crime and 

16 Security launched the Crime Gun Intelligence Unit, 

17 in partnership with United States law enforcement 

18 agencies. 

19 (11) The Crime Gun Intelligence Unit, located 

20 in Trinidad and Tobago, provides intelligence for its 

21 member states regarding illicit firearms and ammu22 nition. 

23 (12) On June 8, 2023, Vice President Kamala 

24 Harris announced, ‘‘the Department of Justice will 

25 name a Coordinator for Caribbean Firearms ProsVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:22 Apr 09, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4067.IS S4067

ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 4067 IS

1 ecutions who will be an experienced Department of 

2 Justice prosecutor.’’. 

3 (13) On July 5, 2023, Secretary of State 

4 Antony Blinken announced that Michael Ben’Ary 

5 will serve as the Coordinator for Caribbean Firearms 

6 Prosecutions. 

7 (14) As of October 31, 2023, the Department 

8 of Justice had prosecuted 207 defendants for fire9 arms trafficking using authorities derived from the 

10 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, including 80 de11 fendants for making straw purchases. 

12 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

13 The purposes of this Act are— 

14 (1) to combat illicit firearms trafficking from 

15 the United States to the Caribbean; 

16 (2) to bolster the security of the Caribbean re17 gion and the United States; and 

18 (3) to increase oversight of the Coordinator for 

19 Caribbean Firearms Prosecutions of the Department 

20 of Justice. 

21 SEC. 4. DEFINED TERM. 

22 In this Act, the term ‘‘appropriate congressional com23 mittees’’ means— 

24 (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 

25 Senate; 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 4067 IS

1 (2) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Sen2 ate; 

3 (3) the Committee on Homeland Security and 

4 Governmental Affairs of the Senate. 

5 (4) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 

6 House of Representatives; 

7 (5) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

8 House of Representatives; 

9 (6) the Committee on Homeland Security of the 

10 House of Representatives; 

11 SEC. 5. REPORT ON COORDINATOR FOR CARIBBEAN FIRE12 ARMS PROSECUTIONS’ ACTIVITIES. 

13 Not later than 90 days after the date of the enact14 ment of this Act, and annually thereafter for the following 

15 5 years, the Attorney General, in coordination with the 

16 Department of State, and any other Federal agency des17 ignated by the Attorney General, shall submit a report to 

18 the appropriate congressional committees that includes— 

19 (1) a comprehensive review of the enforcement 

20 of sections 932 and 933 of title 18, United States 

21 Code, by the Coordinator for Caribbean Firearms 

22 Prosecutions of the Department of Justice; and 

23 (2) specifies— 

24 (A) the total number of investigations and 

25 prosecutions launched by the Coordinator for 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 4067 IS

1 Caribbean Firearms Prosecutions, 

2 disaggregated by— 

3 (i) the judicial district involved; 

4 (ii) the alleged destination of the fire5 arm, ammunition, and firearm accessories; 

6 (iii) the number and types of firearms, 

7 ammunition, and firearm accessories, to 

8 the extent such information is available; 

9 and 

10 (iv) the method of transportation of 

11 the firearm, ammunition, and firearm ac12 cessories, to the extent such information is 

13 available; 

14 (B) coordination efforts with the Depart15 ment of State, the Department of Homeland 

16 Security, and other Federal, State, and local 

17 law enforcement agencies; 

18 (C) coordination efforts with the Caribbean 

19 Community’s Crime Gun Intelligence Unit, and 

20 any other regional or international organiza21 tions designated by the Secretary of State. 

Æ 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS