On 1 June 1942, the Amsterdam chief of police, Sybren Tulp, founded the Jewish Affairs Office. He felt that the Amsterdam police was better equipped for tracking Jews than the German authorities, because the locals knew the city better. The Office was located in the centre of Amsterdam. It was run by Rudolf Dahmen von Buchholz, an NSB member and antisemite.
The Jewish Affairs Office handled the cases of Jews who had violated anti-Jewish measures or ordinary laws, and tracked down Jewish people in hiding. During the arrests, the officers used violence and stole Jewish belongings. The thefts got out of hand, and so, in early 1943, the department came under the leadership of the Sicherheitsdienst.