WIREDGOV

Scotland’s approach shifting as new crime types emerge.

Agencies across Scotland have today announced they are stepping up efforts to tackle Serious Organised Crime in the face of emerging trends including cybercrime, human trafficking and environmental crime.

As he followed a series of police raids across Fife during an on-going operation to take down organised criminals, Justice Secretary Michael Matheson said the time was right to implement a smarter, more sophisticated approach to tackling Serious Organised Crime for Scotland.

He was speaking on the day figures showed that a total of 232 Serious Organised Crime Groups (SOCGs) are recorded as operating in Scotland, made up of about 3,700 individuals. 70% of SOCGs are located in the West of Scotland, 18% in the East and 12% in the North.

Around 44% of Serious Organised Crime Groups are involved in multiple types of crime and criminals are also now finding new channels to exploit, including the renewable energy sector, high value vehicle theft, re-activation of firearms, pension fund fraud, and mortgage fraud.

New figures also show that there are 150 SOCGs linked to seemingly-legitimate businesses in Scotland, where industries are exploited by criminals to launder cash, fund their criminal activities or make money by bypassing the regulations that honest businesses abide by.

This morning, Police Scotland conducted a series of raids across Fife co-ordinated from the state of the art Joint Operations Centre in the Crime Campus.

Cabinet Secretary for Justice Michael Matheson said:

“There’s no place for serious organised crime in Scotland and I’m proud of the innovative approach we’re taking to tackle it head on, from the “Mr Bigs” to the white-collar criminals exploiting our economy. Our success over the past eight years since the Taskforce was set up is evident however it is clear to me that the time is now right to shift direction to become even more sophisticated in tackling emerging crime trends. By working together, agencies are sending a really strong message that there’s no place for criminals to hide and we will not allow them to peddle misery in our communities.

“But this isn’t just about putting in doors and locking up criminals. There’s also a huge need to reduce the harm caused by serious organised crime, stop the cycle of deprivation, and crucially give those who have been involved in serious organised crime the chance to turn their lives around. That’s why having charities such as Action for Children firmly at the heart of the work of the Taskforce is so important.

“Since 2007, the Scottish Government’s Cashback for Communities programme has seized criminal cash and committed £75 million of it to community initiatives right across Scotland - giving back over 1.5 million opportunities and activities for young people.

“I’m proud that today’s activity took place in the Scottish Government-funded Scottish Crime Campus, which is a very visible example of the collaborative approach we’re taking to tackling crime and which is the envy right across the world.

“We’re making huge strides in stamping out serious organised crime in Scotland, and ultimately making Scotland flourish.”

Deputy Chief Constable Iain Livingstone from Police Scotland said:

“Serious organised crime in Scotland has diversified into new areas of activity while retaining a significant grip on traditional markets such as drug importation and distribution. We are now seeing criminals engaged in sophisticated economic crimes, environmental crime, social engineering fraud – all in the name of profit and all under-pinned by violence and intimidation.

“Police Scotland and our partners in the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce are absolutely committed to doing all we can to keep people safe, to diminish the threat from serious organised crime and to allow our communities to exist free from the impact of such criminality.

“By working collaboratively, we will become even more effective at tackling serious organised crime at a local, national and international level. The strategy, the Scottish Crime Campus, our officers working in communities and our partners engaged in diverting and deterring people away from criminality are all integral to our continued success.

“Today, Police Scotland has carried out enforcement in support of an ongoing serious organised crime investigation. We are determined to ensure our approach makes a difference to people on the streets of Scotland.”

John Logue Director of Serious Casework at the Crown Office added:

"We are maximising our use of the proceeds of crime legislation to ensure crime groups don't profit from Serious Organised Crime.

"This ambitious strategy will see us working hand in hand with regulators and local authorities who have an added range of powers to disrupt crime groups.

"By sharing intelligence with them and through the use of their regulatory powers, crime groups will be deprived of the specialist legal, financial and cyber advice they rely on rendering their enterprises unable to flourish."

David Martin, Chief Executive of Dundee City Council, is the national lead for the ‘deter’ strand on the Serious Organised Crime Task Force. He said: “Crucial to tackling serious organised crime is co-ordination and planning. With all of the appropriate agencies and organisations working closely together, we can present a united front to outsmart serious organised crime. That way we are also better placed to tackle the root causes of it and the harm it does in our communities across the country.”

Paul Carberry, director of service development at Action for Children Scotland, added: “Serious organised crime creates inequality in our society – it sees families destroyed by drugs, parents indebted to loan sharks, and children lured into a dangerous lifestyle when they are still too young to understand the risks and consequences.

“In order to protect these children, Action for Children Scotland has developed an innovative service which identifies those who are at-risk and supports them to choose a different path. We are proud to work as part of the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce to deliver this diversionary activity, helping to dismantle serious organised crime groups and giving vulnerable children the tools and support they need to succeed.”

Notes To Editors

Scotland has adopted an innovative approach to tackling serious organised crime, particularly the focus on including organisations such as local authorities and the voluntary sector in their work, providing an innovative approach to not only tackling criminals head-on, but also providing support and rehabilitation for criminals who want to turn their lives around and communities who need support.

The building of the Scottish Crime Campus at Gartcosh, funded by the Scottish Government, is another example of Scotland’s world-leading approach to tackling SOC. This internationally-recognised centre of excellence for tackling Serious Organised Crime highlights the new approach taken amongst specialist agencies to deal with crime in a more sophisticated way than ever before.

Scotland’s Serious Organised Crime Strategy 2015 is available on the Scottish Government’s website here at:

This second strategy updates the previous strategy “Letting Our Communities Flourish” which was published by the Scottish Government in 2009.

A total of 232 Serious Organised Crime Groups (SOCGs) are recorded as operating in Scotland, made up of about 3,700 individuals.

• 70% of SOCGs are located in the West of Scotland, 18% in the East and 12% in the North.
• There is evidence to suggest that Serious Organised Crime has a disproportionate impact on Scotland’s poorer communities, contributing to social and economic inequalities.
• 65% of SOCGs are involved in drug crime; heroin is the most popular commodity, followed by cocaine, cannabis, amphetamine and tranquilisers.
• Other crime types include violence; money-laundering; various forms of fraud including cigarette smuggling and tax fraud; human-trafficking; metal theft; bogus workmen and cybercrime.
• Human trafficking occurs throughout Scotland and is not confined to its major cities. Human trafficking has been identified in Argyll, Glasgow, Kirkcaldy, Edinburgh, Skye and Aberdeen.
• Police investigations relating to bogus workmen and doorstep crime have found that the average age of victims is 81. Most victims are women who live alone. After a crime of this type, victims suffer more rapid declines in health than non-victim peers.
• 65% of SOCGs are involved in the use of seemingly legitimate businesses. The most common business types are licensed premises, taxis, restaurants, shops, garage repairs and vehicle maintenance, and property development.
• Over 650 such businesses have been identified.

The Serious Organised Crime strategy has a four-pronged plan to reduce the harm caused by serious organised crime in Scotland.

DIVERT – To divert people from becoming involved in Serious Organised Crime and using its products

DETER – To deter Serious Organised Crime Groups by supporting private, public and third sector organisations to protect themselves and each other

DETECT – To identify, detect and prosecute those involved in Serious Organised Crime

DISRUPT – To disrupt Serious Organised Crime Groups

The Serious Organised Crime Taskforce, which is chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice, was set up by the Scottish Government to provide direction and co-ordination for all the organisations involved in tackling serious organised crime in Scotland.

• The Taskforce has a remit to pursue serious organised crime in all its forms by bringing together all agencies involved in tackling organised crime groups.
• Partners include Police Scotland, the NCA, HMRC, COPFS, SOLACE and the Scottish Business Resilience Centre, among others public and third sector bodies.
• Disrupting and dismantling serious organised crime in Scotland is a job for everyone, not just law enforcers. The private sector has a key role to play along with other partner agencies. The work that the anti-illicit trade hub is doing is a perfect example of this.
• CashBack for Communities is a unique Scottish Government initiative which takes money seized from criminals and reinvests it into wide range of sporting, cultural, educational and mentoring activities for children and young people throughout Scotland. Since 2007 we have committed £75 million to community initiatives, which have so far delivered over 1.5 million free, positive and healthy opportunities and activities for young people across all 32 Local Authorities in Scotland. Further details can be found athttp://www.cashbackforcommunities.org