Criminal Assets Bureau returned €4m to the Exchequer in 2014

The Criminal Assets Bureau returned almost €4 million to the Exchequer in 2014, according to its nineteenth Annual Report, which was presented to the Oireachtas today by Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald.

Ms Fitzgerald said: “I wish to commend the staff of the Bureau on their continued commitment to the pursuit and seizure of the proceeds of crime as illustrated in this Report. I also want to acknowledge the significant profile the Bureau maintains at international level as part of the global effort to trace and remove from circulation the ill gotten gains of criminal activity.

“The Report highlights the co-ordinated, multi agency approach to targeting the proceeds of criminal conduct deployed by the Bureau which is widely acknowledged as best practice in this field. The Criminal Assets Bureau is an essential component in the State’s law enforcement response to serious and organised crime and the Government is committed to fully supporting its work.”

The Bureau uses Proceeds of Crime, Revenue and Social Welfare legislation to target the proceeds of crime generated from a range of criminal activities, most notably the proceeds generated by serious criminals involved in the trafficking and sale of drugs but also proceeds generated through other criminal activity including oil fraud.

In 2014, it returned over €3.8 million to the Exchequer, including €467,000 through Proceeds of Crime legislation, €3.017 million under Revenue legislation, and €336,000 in Social Welfare overpayments.

The Bureau also brought 10 new proceeds of crime proceedings before the High Court obtaining Interim Orders (freezing orders) to the value of €6.76 million.

Taxes and interest demanded during the year was valued at over €14 million and social welfare savings amounted to over €190,000.

The report also highlights other activities undertaken by the Bureau, including the development of a new Asset Confiscation and Tracing Investigators Course in conjunction with the Garda College.

At an international level, the Bureau has led on an EU project for the establishment of the Association of Law Enforcement Forensic Accountants Network, with the aim of developing the quality and reach of forensic accountancy through law enforcement agencies.

The full report is available from the Department of Justice website.