The Criminal Assets Bureau seized nearly £10 million in property and cash last year, according to its annual report presented yesterday by the Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue. The CAB, established five years to combat organised crime, obtained five interim orders against 10 defendants on property with a value of £838,536 and one interim order against two defendants on property worth £52,230 sterling under section 2 of the Proceeds of Crime Act, 1996, in the 12 months to last December 31st. It obtained seven interlocutory orders against six defendants on property with a value of £1,641,215 under section 3 of the Act. It sought tax and interest worth £4,858,216 and collected tax and interest worth £6,769,218. It also cut off social welfare payments to suspected criminals, saving the Exchequer £108,011.
Since its inception in 1996, the CAB has obtained section 2 interim orders on property worth £8.4 million approximately and section 3 interim orders on property worth approximately £7 million. The bureau has sought more than £37 million in tax and interest from suspected criminals and collected £9.9 million in tax and interest. Social welfare savings have amounted to more than £1.6 million.