Reading Room Document

Investigative Authority of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Certain Areas not Subject to the Sovereignty of the United States

The FBI asked the OLC whether the FBI had jurisdiction in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, which at the time included the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau. The OLC concluded that because the Northern Mariana Islands were under United States sovereignty, the FBI had the same jurisdiction it had in any other part of the United States. In regard to the Federated States of Micronesia and Republic of the Marshall Islands, the OLC noted that they were “basically” independent countries, but that the FBI had authority to conduct investigative activities based on two law enforcement agreements entered into by the United States and the governments of the islands.

December 18, 1986