Criminal Assets Bureau to get new powers to ‘name and shame’ criminals

Currently, every three months Revenue publishes the names of people who deliberately or carelessly make incorrect tax returns.

Ms McEntee hopes to do the same with the CAB to act as a deterrent and strengthen the powers of the bureau.

“I think in some way it might and hopefully will act as a deterrent, but also very clearly show the community and the public who the CAB are dealing with, who they’re working with,” Ms McEntee said.

“Hopefully, that will in itself be something that strengthens the CAB a little bit further.”

The minister is also proposing to shorten the timeframe for confiscating assets coming from the proceeds of crime.

The proposals come following a review of the CAB, which was formed 26 years ago.

The murder of Sunday Independent journalist Veronica Guerin prompted the establishment of the CAB.

It has had long battles with organised criminals, including convicted gangster John Gilligan.

In more recent times it has turned its focus on cartel boss Daniel Kinahan as well as other senior criminals involved in the drugs trade.

Ms McEntee recently received the review of the Proceeds of Crime Act 1996, which underpins the CAB, from her department.

The CAB is responsible for clamping down on and seizing the assets of criminals who have obtained assets through the proceeds of crime, such as cars, property or designer clothing.

It seized substantial cryptocurrency assets in 2019 of more than €53m in value and returned almost €22m to the Exchequer between 2016 and 2020, between Proceeds of Crime orders, Revenue returns and social welfare reclaims.

However, Ms McEntee also wants to shorten the amount of time that it takes for the CAB to confiscate the assets of criminals.

Once the High Court has determined that an asset, such as a house, car or luxury watch, was bought through the proceeds of crime, it can take a further seven years before it may be ultimately confiscated.

The Justice Minister wants to slash the seven-year timeframe before a “disposal order” can be made to three-and-a- half years, or even less.

It is hoped that reducing this period would mean that criminals cannot enjoy the assets they obtained through their criminal activities.

“What that essentially means is you could have a criminal whose house it has an order on it, but they can live in the house for seven years before it actually goes into the Exchequer and before anything can happen to it,” Ms McEntee said.

“And for me, that’s too long, and the review highlighted that as well. In that type of a situation, you don’t have someone left being able to enjoy their gains from criminality.”

During the current seven- year period, the CAB is required to maintain, preserve and protect such property, which is costly for the State.

Reducing the suspension period would cut costs and allow the CAB to keep its focus on investigations.

Ms McEntee recently launched the €2m Community Safety Innovation Fund, which will see money seized from criminals invested into local communities.

“The whole focus of that is to take proceeds of crime and funding and to put it back into communities,” she said.

“So the quicker we have that funding, be it cash, be it anything else that’s seized, going back into the Exchequer, the quicker it goes back into communities.

“I think it creates even a stronger link that crime doesn’t pay.”