The sum of GB pound 26.5 million is the largest amount of cash seized in London in a single year since the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) 2002 came into force. It represents a 33% rise in cash seized in London compared with 2010 when criminals were deprived of GB pound 19.8 million in cash.
In addition to the cash permanently stripped from criminals, a further GB pound 28 million is subject to Confiscation Orders and GB pound 16.3 million to Cash Forfeiture Orders awaiting forfeiture under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.
This means that in total during 2011, GB pound 70,999,563 was either seized or confiscated from criminals.
It follows a concerted drive across the Metropolitan Police Service to deprive criminals of their cash and assets, as well as a number of high-profile successful forfeiture hearings.
Proceeds of Crime Act: a powerful piece of legislation
Detective superintendent Matt Parkes, head of the Met Police’s Money Laundering and Financial Crime Command, said: “The Proceeds of Crime Act is one of the most powerful tools available to the police for tackling organised crime. At each level it can destroy the criminal role model, sending a clear message that crime does not pay.”
Parkes added: “It’s the most feared punishment for criminals who regard crime as a business, and I hope these latest results help to build the public’s confidence in the criminal justice system.”
The Proceeds of Crime Act came into force in 2003, enabling police to seize cash from individuals when that cash is suspected of either being the proceeds of crime or for use in crime. The police then present a case to magistrates that the money seized is ‘crime money’ to a civil case standard (ie on the balance of probability). The onus is then on the suspects to show they earned it legitimately, otherwise they lose it.
Luxury goods seized by the Met during 2011 have included a red Ferrari, a Bentley Continental, jewellery, watches and properties within London and the Home Counties.
One of the highlights of 2011 was Operation Eaglewood, a lengthy undercover operation orchestrated by the Met against drug traffickers operating in the UK. During the course of the investigation into the organised network, cash totalling GB pound 2.6 million was seized and mainly in 500 Euro notes.
GB pound 2 million of this cash has now been subject to successful forfeiture hearings. In addition, defendants have been subject to confiscation proceedings where the courts have judged that the benefit of their criminality to be GB pound 99.7 million. The courts have ordered that these defendants pay confiscation orders totalling GB pound 5 million.
Thirty-three members of the network were convicted between 2008 and 2011 in a series of trials. The principal launderer Eyad Iktilat (4.11.63 – now 48 ys) of Levita House, Paddington, was sentenced to a total of 30 years. He was subject to a benefit figure of GB pound 70 million and a realisable figure of GB pound 2.7 million.
In April 2011, a separate case convicted US fraudster David Brooks who stored more than GB pound 2 million in cash in a corrupt safety deposit box. He was ordered to forfeit the cash at City of Westminster Magistrates Court. It followed an investigation by the Metropolitan Police Service’s proactive Money Laundering Taskforce as part of Operation Rize (a long-running investigation into money laundering concerning safety deposit boxes in Park Street, London W1).
Topline facts and figures
Criminals in 2011 were six times more likely to have had their assets seized than in 2002. This equates to 239 people who had assets recovered in 2002. Last year this rose to 1,595.
The rate of cash seizures has risen from GB pound 20,000 a day in 2002 to over GB pound 72,000 a day last year.
In 2009-2010, all POCA money was re-invested in Met policing – this was mainly focused on creating an infrastructure of payback teams and training.
Some 26% of all cash seizures are drug related, while the average cash seizure made is GB pound 16,400.
Breakdown and total figures between 1 January and 19 December 2011
- Cash seized = GB pound 26,539,969
- Confiscation Orders = GB pound 28,075,791
- POCA Cash Forfeiture Orders = GB pound 16,375,803
- Total = GB pound 70,991,563
Breakdown and total figures for same period in 2010
- Cash seized = GB pound 19,883,122
- Confiscation Orders = GB pound 20,777,441
- POCA Cash Forfeiture Orders = GB pound 14,375,956
- Total = GB pound 55,036,520