More than £5m of assets seized from criminals is to be handed to police across England and Wales, the Home Office has announced.
Half of the a total of £31.8m in criminal assets, confiscated between October and December last year, will be shared between police, prosecutors, courts and other bodies. Under an incentive scheme introduced in 2006, police and recovery agencies can keep half of the cash they seize from criminals.
The amount to be given to English and Welsh police forces is £5.5m, up from £5.14m during the same quarter in 2008. The remainder of the £15.9m will be shared by HM Revenue and Customs, the Serious Organised Crime Agency, the Crown Prosecution Service, the courts service and other local authorities.
More than £530m has been seized since 2003, when the Proceeds of Crime Act came into effect. Over £135m was recovered in the financial year 2007-2008.
Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker said the scheme “makes crime far less profitable” for criminals and helps the police force to fight crime.
He added: “Recovering more than £31m from criminals in the space of three months is a great achievement”.
“I want to thank the police and other partners for their hard work in seizing the money and undermining criminal gangs.”
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