The Act enables the police and other enforcement bodies, like trading standards, to recover the criminal assets of those people living off the proceeds of crime. The object was to help ensure that ‘crime doesn’t pay’.

On 5 June 2008, the then LibDem led Council approved a report supporting the use of proceeds of crime legislation to help deter and detect criminal activity, particularly that arising from those involved in supply of counterfeit products.

Since that time, Council officers have secured their first convictions for money laundering, have made their first cash seizure (£3500 seized from a person suspected of supplying illicit tobacco) and obtained over £565k from criminal activity in ‘confiscation proceedings’ (of which £132K has bee paid to CYC under the Home Office’s Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme).
All of the ‘confiscation proceedings’ concluded to date have been in relation to the supply of counterfeit products.

Financial investigators (AFIs) undertake this work. They are accredited by the National Police Improvement Agency after receiving specialist training. They are given specific powers to conduct investigations into the origin of an offender’s assets.

The money obtained from criminals will be used to sustain the financial investigation teams. Some will be available for target hardening work and to support initiatives agreed by York’s Safer York Partnership.