Merseyside Police secure over £200,000 of criminals assets at court this week

Merseyside Police has secured over £200,000 of criminal assets at court this week.

On Tuesday 14 November a forfeiture hearing at Liverpool City Magistrates ruled on a number of cases involving assets seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

A total of £227,631 of criminal assets was secured by Merseyside Police.

Amongst the cases heard was a money laundering investigation where police obtained an account freezing order on two businesses operating as a private limited company. The investigation identified that the company was money laundering for criminals, moving significant amount of funds accrued through ticket touting in Merseyside. The case was uncontested at court, and forfeiture was granted for a total of £127,689.54.

Another huge sum of £30,455 was forfeited after the court heard that the accused acquired the cash from being a dog breeder and had paid tax on the profit. The investigation disproved the their claim proving that the cash was obtained through the proceeds of criminal activities. The case was once again uncontested by the accused.

£38,890 was also forfeited in court from a drugs investigation where the sum was found by police during a search inside two addresses in Walton. The accused stated the cash was savings from benefits but further potential offences of benefit fraud were uncovered during the investigation. When this was put to the accused the forfeiture was not contested and the funds were secured by Merseyside Police.

Other cases which added to the total of £227,631 were also heard in court and speaking after the results Detective Chief Inspector Mike Dalton said: “This was an exceptional outcome for our Financial Investigators who through meticulous investigations have secured a huge amount of cash that could have been used to fund organised crime in Merseyside and the devastating affect they have on the Community.

“I would like to thank the Investigators involved for their work in the securing of such significant assets at court.

“I hope the results shows how relentless we are in our work to remove the ill-gotten gains of criminals, hitting them were it hurts! The proceeds of crime recovered at Court will be of great benefit when invested back into Community initiatives to help prevent crime and protect the most vulnerable.”

If you have any information about money laundering or cash being stored in your community please contact police @MerPolCC, or call 101. Alternatively, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at: Give information anonymously | Crimestoppers (crimestoppers-uk.org).