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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
Time: 9:48 pm
Time: 9:48 pm
Results for financial investigations
4 results foundAuthor: Cavanagh, Ben Title: A Review Of Reinvestment In Financial Investigation From The Proceeds Of Crime Summary: In January 2010, the Scottish Government provided matched funding of £1 million (£500k from Scottish Government and £500k from the police) to 3 forces to improve their capacity for financial investigation, the range of uses to which it is applied and its overall impact. The funding was intended to increase the number of financial investigators working in police forces with the objective of targeting community level criminal activity. Decisions about the nature of the posts, where they would be based and how they would be tasked and managed, were left for forces to make in light of local needs and priorities. There were however important reference points for senior managers in Force Investigation Units (FIUs) to help inform these decisions. These included a joint Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary for Scotland (HMICS) and Inspectorate of Prosecution in Scotland (IPS) report about proceeds of crime and financial investigation, with recommendations for the improvement of financial investigation and Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) systems. They also included a number of training and guidance manuals developed by the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA). The stated aims for the reinvestment project were to ‘improve financial investigation’ and ‘increase the number of financial investigators in local force divisions with the objective of targeting community level criminal activity.’ The assessment of the impact of the extra funding is therefore conceived in a number of ways related to these aims including: consideration of how far the new funding supported the achievement of the HMICS/IPS recommendations for POCA and financial investigation, the extent to which police forces realised their own hopes for the local development of financial investigation, and, how far the funding has helped it make its maximum and most efficient contribution to policing outcomes beyond those most directly related to the use of ‘proceeds of crime’ legislation. The research included interviews with senior managers, financial investigators, and officials from other parts of the financial recovery systems, including the Crown Office’s National Casework Division (renamed in March 2011 as the Serious Organised Crime Division) and Civil Recovery Unit, who use the products of financial investigators in their asset recovery work, as well as the collation of available administrative and management data, and analysis of apparent trends. Details: Edinburgh: Scottish Government Social Research, 2011. 34p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 25, 2011 at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/10/20092612/10 Year: 2011 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/10/20092612/10 Shelf Number: 123144 Keywords: Asset ForfeitureCriminal Investigation (U.K.)Financial InvestigationsMoney LaunderingOrganized CrimeProceeds of Crime |
Author: Webb, Sarah Title: The Contribution of Financial Investigation to Tackling Organised Crime: A Qualitative Study Summary: Financial investigation is one of many specialist investigative approaches employed by law enforcement when tackling organised crime, and it is an increasingly well-established discipline. Financial investigators typically operate within the legal framework of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA), which introduced a number of asset recovery powers, including the use of restraint orders1 and post-conviction confiscation orders and cash seizure and civil forfeiture/recovery. Related policies include the Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme, which allows frontline agencies to keep a proportion of assets recovered. Knowledge about, and understanding of, the role that financial investigation can play in tackling organised crime has been identified as a key evidence gap. The current research therefore explores the contribution of financial investigation as one of the specialist investigation approaches used by law enforcement agencies to tackle organised crime. The report sets out its use and benefits, as well as the barriers and implications, for policy and practice. The research explored 60 cases where financial investigation was used to tackle organised crime. Methods were qualitative; 149 semi-structured interviews were carried out with practitioners including financial investigators, investigating officers and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) representatives. An additional eight interviews were completed with practitioners working in a confiscation order enforcement role. Key Findings -- Financial investigation was used across all aspects of organised crime cases, from identifying criminality, developing intelligence and case building, through to prosecution and confiscation order enforcement. Financial investigations were rarely used to identify organised criminality in the first instance. Financial investigation techniques were applied in more than one-half of the cases studied during the pre- and post-arrest investigation and case-building phase. Where used, financial investigation contributed to the process of case building through: - identifying organised criminality in the first instance; - identifying the extent of an organised crime group; - locating assets owned or used by organised crime group members; - identifying ownership and use of properties; - uncovering evidence of the lifestyle led by those targeted; - tracking the movements of individuals; - placing people at particular places at particular times, thereby linking them to criminality or particular criminal groups; and - identifying additional offences and offenders. In one-half of the cases examined, evidence from the financial investigation was considered to have influenced the prosecution's case. - In 12 cases, a conviction would not have been possible without the financial investigation (these were mainly money laundering or fraud cases). - In 14 cases the financial investigation was able to demonstrate the greater involvement of the accused in the criminal activity. - In five cases the financial investigation revealed additional members of the organised crime group who could be brought into the prosecution. - In seven cases additional offences (particularly money laundering) were brought into the prosecution. Interviewees also suggested that greater collaboration between enforcement and prosecution teams, or even co-location, could improve enforcement understanding of the criminality of organised crime groups. Details: London: Home Office, 2012. Source: Internet Resource: Research Report 65: Accessed September 5, 2012 at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/crime-research/horr65?view=Binary Year: 2012 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/crime-research/horr65?view=Binary Shelf Number: 126256 Keywords: Financial CrimesFinancial InvestigationsMoney LaunderingOrganized Crime (U.K.) |
Author: Levi, Michael Title: Drug Law Enforcement and Financial Investigation Strategies Summary: Since the 1980s, there has been a major push in rhetoric and institution-building, emphasizing the centrality of attacking the financial lifeblood of drug trafficking networks and organised economic crimes. Much progress has been made in legislation and the creation of financial intelligence units. However, there are volumes of commentary and legal analysis, but almost nowhere in the world is there any systematic analysis of law enforcement or criminal justice inputs or outputs, let alone of outcomes in terms of reduced crimes of any kind or reduced harms arising from the 'organised' nature of crime. Much depends on how plausible it is that the sources of funds can be represented as being licit when saving or investing: but a global, well-advertised set of financial intermediaries exist upon whom to experiment, and expectations of being reported following failed attempts may be quite low. Judging from the continued involvement of major banks in negligently or actively facilitating a variety of suspected illicit activities, and the relative impunity of institutions that are 'too big to be prosecuted', normal risk perceptions of relevant parts of financial institutions are not nearly high enough to deter all serious noncompliance to AML regulation, though without increasing perceived and/or actual detection risks and reducing elapsed time to action, raising sanctions alone may not work. This report makes no claim to be offering a certain route to success, but is offering an overview of some better and some false steps that have been undertaken in the field of drug law enforcement and financial investigation strategies. Details: London: International Drug Policy Consortium, 2013. 20p. Source: Internet Resource: Modernising Drug Law Enforcement Report 5: Accessed May 18, 2017 at: https://www.tni.org/files/MDLE-5-drug-law-enforcement-financial-investigation-strategies_0.pdf Year: 2013 Country: International URL: https://www.tni.org/files/MDLE-5-drug-law-enforcement-financial-investigation-strategies_0.pdf Shelf Number: 131377 Keywords: Drug EnforcementDrug PolicyDrug ReformDrug TraffickingFinancial InvestigationsMoney LaunderingOrganized Crime |
Author: Center for the Study of Democracy Title: Financing Organised Crime: Human Trafficking in Focus Summary: The report Financing of Organised Crime: Human Trafficking in Focus contributes to a better understanding of the financial aspects of this infamous phenomenon. The analysis explores the sources and mechanisms of the financing of trafficking in human beings, settlement of payments, access to financing in critical moments, costs of business, and the management of profits. The report draws on the findings of nine in-depth country case studies in Belgium, Bulgaria, Italy, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Based on the results of the analysis and the examination of the current practices with regards to financial investigations, the report also suggests recommendations for tackling this crime. The chapters of this report have been written by: Introduction - Atanas Rusev; Chapter 1 - Atanas Rusev, Nadya Stoynova, Fiamma Terenghi, Andrea Di Nicola, and Jelle Janssens; Chapter 2 - Fiamma Terenghi and Andrea Di Nicola; Chapter 3 - Atanas Rusev, Mois Faion, Nadya Stoynova, Anton Kojouharov, and Marian Sabev; Chapter 4 - Sigrid Raets and Jelle Janssens; Chapter 5 - Sigrid Raets and Jelle Janssens; Implications for Policy - Atanas Rusev and Nadya Stoynova. Details: Sofia, Bulgaria: The Center, 2019. 448p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 23, 2019 at: http://www.csd.bg/artShow.php?id=18388 Year: 2019 Country: Europe URL: http://www.csd.bg/artShow.php?id=18388 Shelf Number: 154385 Keywords: Financial InvestigationsHuman TraffickingMoney LaunderingOrganized Crime |