Criminal to pay back ill-gotten gains

May 10 2007

MORE than £500,000 which were the proceeds of a money laundering scam have been seized by West Midlands Police.

Dean Walton, 31, from Solihull, forfeited £508,000 during a civil hearing at Birmingham Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.

Walton was sentenced to seven years at Warwick Crown Court on March 19 for the possession of controlled drugs with intent to supply and money laundering.

He denied the monies were his but he was ordered to pay up.

In other hearings at the court David Crofts, 54, Sheila Burrows, 66, and Julian Vincent, 56, were convicted at Birmingham Crown Court of supplying controlled substances.

Almost £14,000 was forfeited from them following a police drugs raid. They maintained the money was from legitimate business but it was found that the monies were connected to crime.

Detective Chief Inspector Ian Bamber, head of the Economic Crime Team of the force, said: "We are committed to taking the cash out of crime and this is a classic example of how we are using the Proceeds of Crime Act to hit criminals where it hurts - their pockets.

"Last year we seized £3m in cash and the courts ordered over £4.5m of assets to be confiscated. By removing these funds we are removing the opportunity for monies to be reinvested in criminal enterprise.

"We welcome any information on those suspected to be living a lifestyle out of crime."