Minister For Justice Publishes 19th Annual Criminal Assets Bureau Report

The nineteenth annual report of the Criminal Assets Bureau has been presented to Houses of the Oireachtas by Minister for Justice and Equality, Frances Fitzgerald.

Commenting on the publication of the Bureau's activities, Minister 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 utilises the provisions of the Proceeds of Crime, Revenue and Social Welfare legislation in targeting 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.

During 2014, the Bureau returned in excess of €3.8 million to the Exchequer, including €0.467m returned under Proceeds of Crime legislation, €3.017m collected under Revenue legislation and €0.336m recovered in Social Welfare overpayments. In addition, the Bureau brought 10 new proceeds of crime proceedings before the High Court obtaining Interim Orders (freezing orders) to the value of €6.76m. Furthermore, taxes and interest demanded during the year was valued at over €14 million and social welfare savings amounted to over €190,000.

(MH/CD)