Criminal
We act on the instructions of both prosecuting authorities and defence solicitors, considering financial evidence pertaining to a defendant’s alleged guilt or assessing quantum in POCA confiscation proceedings.
Prosecution
We have worked for Police forces, regional recovery units, Trading Standards and the Environment Agency amongst others. One of our Partners has also spent time on secondment to a Police force’s Economic Crime Unit.
- Analysis of banking activity and presentation in a simple format that can be understood by a jury.
- Review and interpretation of financial statements, Companies House filings and tax returns.
- Preparation of CrPR 19 expert reports and witness statements detailing our methodology and findings.
Defence
We have been instructed in relation to allegations of fraud, money laundering, tax evasion, trading whilst insolvent and regulatory breaches amongst others.
- Examination of Section 16 Statements.
- Identifying sources “unexplained credits” in bank accounts.
- Tracing sources of funds used in the acquisition of assets such as property, vehicles and cryptocurrency investments.
- Identification of double counting under different “lifestyle” assumptions.
- Assessing Available Assets, including any associated liabilities or disposal/realisation costs.
- Consideration of possible “Hidden Assets” or “Tainted Gifts”.
We accept instructions under Legal Aid and are accustomed to the process of obtaining Legal Aid Agency funding.
Giving evidence in Court
Both Geoff and Richard have given evidence in the Crown Court on multiple occasions, both on behalf of the Prosecution and the defence. This includes giving evidence via a video link.
Examples of Experience
- Tracing funds flows between the UK and US in respect of trading in stolen ancient artefacts.
- Analysis of cryptocurrency trading performance and the resulting value of residual assets in respect of confiscation.
- Confiscation following a breach of environmental regulations by waste disposal firm. Examination of financial and waste transfer records to ascertain proportion of income and assets derived from the convicted criminality. Analysis of property and motor vehicle assets to determine legitimacy of funding.
- Overview of the financial affairs of a business purporting to provide interior design services but alleged to be supplying warehousing to an OCG involved in large scale cannabis cultivation.
- Tracing the source of funding used to develop a £4 million property portfolio by an individual convicted of supplying drugs and consequently subject to ‘lifestyle’ provisions of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Analysis identified where assets were financed from legitimate sources and where cross-contamination from criminally obtained monies may have occurred.
- Preparation of an expert report in relation to allegations that a care home owner was defrauding his residents, including misuse of a dedicated ‘client account’.
- Consideration of potential ‘Hidden Assets’ under POCA in respect of a businessman convicted of operating a Ponzi-esque property fraud.
- Assessment of financial Benefit under POCA derived by a chicken farmer from the overstocking of free-range hen houses, taking into account both the income generated but also the costs associated with the ‘excess’ birds.
