Editorial

Citation

Veng Mei Leong, A. (2006), "Editorial", Journal of Financial Crime, Vol. 13 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/jfc.2006.30913daa.001

Editorial

There is no doubt that organised crime is motivated by economic gain. Indeed:

... what is organised crime without organising some kind of criminal trade; without selling and buying of forbidden goods and services in an organisational context? The answer is simply nothing (Van Duyne, 1997).

Although terrorism is motivated by a fierce commitment to an ideology and a desire for wholesale destruction, terrorist activities would not be possible without any funding. Recent studies reveal that organised criminals and terrorist groups may not be that distinct, rather they are converging and becoming almost indistinguishable. Like organised criminals, terrorists often secure their finances through criminal activities even though economic gain is not their ultimate goal, and they also launder the criminal proceeds in a similar manner. Hence, monitoring and disrupting the finance of terrorism and organised crime is of utmost importance. The UK Cabinet Office (2000) observed:

... removing assets from criminals can disrupt criminal organisations in much the same way that excessive taxation undermines legitimate business, by cutting into profits, reducing the availability of working capital for existing enterprises and removing reserves for start-up of new criminal enterprises.

Therefore, financial investigation, in addition to traditional investigation techniques, is an important tool for asset identification and recovery, and a key element in ensuring an effective fight against organised crime and terrorist financing.

The Financial Investigation Centre of Excellence, an integral part of the Assets Recovery Agency, takes the lead in promoting and developing the use of financial investigations across the wider asset recovery community, including the private sector. The Centre of Excellence has the statutory obligations for the provision of training and accreditation. Since, the establishment of the Centre in 2003, a national financial investigation training programme with universally recognised qualification was created to develop financial investigations into an integral part of law enforcement investigations and to ensure the optimal use of the new investigative powers under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. In 2005/2006, the Centre provided training for over 600 new financial investigators and enhanced training for over 700 experienced financial investigators. As of 31 March 2006, over 2,700 active financial investigators were accredited by the Centre. A complete e-learning and support system for trainee and experienced financial investigators, called the Financial Investigation Support System, was also launched last year. In addition, the Centre also seeks to develop financial investigation capacity in the international community. It has contributed significantly to the Steering Group for an EU Design for Financial Investigations[1], which aims to standardise and co-ordinate financial investigation training, and also facilitate more effective law enforcement co-operation throughout the EU25.

Indeed, the importance of financial investigation should be emphasised under the new regime of the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA). Financial investigators need to be involved at an early stage to identify and freeze assets for confiscation and civil recovery. A clearer career path is necessary to provide more incentives for financial investigators and to attract the right people with the right skills to SOCA. Furthermore, it is essential to develop cross agency co-operation and facilitate the sharing of best practice.

Angela Veng Mei Leong

Note

1.Meeting Report, Directorate-General Justice and Home Affairs, European Commission, Brussels (8 July 2004)