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Money from crime does pay afterall
SUSSEX Police as well as local communities are benefiting from thousands of pounds confiscated from criminals.
And the thieves, burglars, dealers and tricksters are being warned that more police efforts are now being directed at getting back the profits of their crimes.
More than 310,000 taken by courts from crooks in the last financial year alone is coming back to Sussex through the asset confiscation incentive scheme set up under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Details are included in the Government's Criminal Justice System Information Bulletin just published by the Ministry of Justice.
Since the incentivisation scheme started a total of 1.5 million has come back to Sussex in this way.
Detective Superintendent Andy Buchan said: "Last year we achieved 2.5 million of such orders, our highest ever total, and this is now being ploughed back into our work to hit criminals in the pocket.
"The money we get back goes to help fund our local financial investigations, thus helping save the Sussex taxpayer money.
"We currently have 12 financial investigators working in our local divisions, as well as a headquarters-based Money Laundering Investigation Team and this money will help to fund them."
Det Supt Buchan said the recent money was just the latest product of years of continuing hard work by officers, who now target not just the criminals but also the profits of their crimes, whether from drug dealing or any other form of criminal activity.
He added: "It can take time and each investigation is subject to a court-authorised confiscation order, and criminals need to know that where we think they have profits, hidden though they may be, we don't give up after sentencing.
"Financial investigation is increasingly at the heart of criminal investigation."
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Thursday 09 February 2012
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