More than £15 million of cash has been seized from criminals over the last year across Greater Manchester, cops say.
Since April 2022, specialist investigators in GMP’s Economic Crime Unit have seized, confiscated, and forfeited a huge total of £15,751,210 in criminal finances. Another £2.7 million has also been recovered from criminals’ bank accounts — and returned directly to victims.
Confiscating the cash has ‘helped to reduce the amount of violent crime’, according to detectives, who have pledged to ‘continue to work diligently’. Officers made the seizures through a variety of laws and orders.
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"This figure represents our most successful year to date in terms of asset recovery and is a credit to all those who have worked really hard to successfully seize, confiscate, recover and forfeit these criminal finances,” said Detective Superintendent Joe Harrop, leading GMP’s Economic Crime Unit, announcing the haul.
"Their work has helped to reduce the amount of violent crime on Greater Manchester’s streets as often these finances are funding serious and organised crime. We will continue to work diligently to remove criminal proceeds from the hands of those who seek to profit from criminality.
“Asset recovery legislation allows us to disrupt criminal enterprises, deter people from becoming involved in crime and recompense victims and communities blighted by criminality.
"A lot of our work is conducted in the background but please be assured that tackling economic crime is a lengthy task and we are working hard behind the scenes relentlessly to ensure that those involved in criminal behaviour are brought to justice and pay the price for their crimes. If you see, or suspect something is wrong, tell us, and we can sort it."
The team has been particularly successful with the project — called Operation Falcon — due to GMP increasing the size of the asset recovery teams and bringing in a dedicated money laundering unit.
The team has used Confiscation Orders, which are granted after a criminal is convicted in court, to secure just short of £3 million. Another £14 million was forfeited under Civil Recovery legislation, which does not rely on a criminal conviction.
Some £4 million of cash and listed assets have been forfeited in the last year, along with bank balances totalling £8.7 million. In addition to the £15,000,000 recovered under POCA legislation, a further £2,657,211 has been recovered from bank accounts and returned directly to victims of crime.
Anyone with concerns or information about suspicious financial activity, should report to police online, if able, at www.gmp.police.uk or via 101.
Details can be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
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