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Tackling serious organised crime
18/10/2007
Bringing together specialist crime-fighting expertise, skills and knowledge within a new strategic approach will be central to putting Scotland's criminal networks and gangs out of business, Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said today.
The Justice Secretary used a visit to HQ of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA), to highlight the vital role that the government's new Serious Organised Crime Taskforce will play in the fight against organised crime.
The Task Force will meet for the first time in Edinburgh next Monday.
The Justice Secretary also helped launch a joint initiative by the SCDEA and the Road Haulage Association aimed at cracking down on human trafficking and the smuggling of illegal goods, including drugs.
Kenny MacAskill said:
"Organised crime is a cancer in Scotland. It undermines legitimate business, damages our economic potential, and brings misery to people's lives through crime and addiction.
"This government will pursue organised crime with both vigour and determination. The Serious Organised Crime Taskforce I am creating will bring together the specialist expertise, skills and knowledge in one place to lead the fight against these criminals.
"The use of forensic accountancy by the SCDEA gives us an important new weapon in that fight, meaning that criminals will find it increasingly difficult to hide their money in the legitimate businesses they set up to launder their ill gotten gains.
"This kind of work has rarely been high-profile - but it was these type of crime-fighting skills that finally saw America's biggest gangster Al Capone brought to book for tax evasion in the 1930's. More importantly the SCDEA's Money Laundering Unit was able to take down James Stevenson "the Iceman", a man considered to be Scotland's number one criminal.
"The SCDEA is working towards recruiting more specialists to increase the size of the Scottish Money Laundering and E-crime units - something that this Government is keen to encourage.
"The criminal underworld's Mr Bigs and their henchmen should be under no illusion that this Government will use all means at its disposal to put them out of business and off the streets."
Commenting on the joint SCDEA / RHA initiative, the Justice Secretary said:
"There are a small number of criminals causing a significant amount of harm to our communities. But they can't operate on their own. They rely on others within our communities to support their enterprises. Such as someone to distribute their commodity and people to bring this commodity to Scotland - undetected - which they are willing to pay a premium for.
"This means that the opportunity of making a quick and easy buck is too much for some and they agree to carry illegal goods along with their legitimate cargo. These people don't care about the misery they cause to those who live in our hardest hit communities. Those who are blighted by drugs crime and violence on the streets.
"This new joint initiative between the Agency and the haulage industry will make the minority involved in these kind of illegal activities think twice about the impact of their actions.
"I would encourage hauliers and drivers to make any suspicions they have known to the police by contacting Crimestoppers on 0800-555-111."
The Serious Crime Taskforce, whose membership includes this Government, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, the Serious Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA), ACPOS, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) will hold its first meeting on Monday 22 October 2007.
During his visit today Mr MacAskill met the Agency's Head of Forensic Accountancy. He also met representatives of the Serious Organised Crime Agency and Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs.