NI: £834,000 boost for prosecutors and courts from organised crime groups
A total of £834,000 was returned to law enforcement agencies, the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) and the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service last year out of £1.7 million recovered from organised crime groups.
The Organised Crime Task Force (OCTF) dismantled 23 organised crime groups (OCGs) last year, according to its latest annual report for 2016/17, a three per cent increase on the previous year.
The remainder of the £1.7 million was allocated to a wide range of initiatives aimed at preventing crime or reducing the fear of crime.
The OCTF, in partnership with the Joint Agency Task Force and Paramilitary Crime Task Force, made over 5,500 drugs seizures last year and supported 34 victims and potential victims of modern slavery.
The fifteenth OCTF Annual Report and Threat Assessment also recognises emerging threats such as cyber crime and how the internet continues to be exploited by criminals across the globe.