Effect of Unexplained Wealth Laws in Queensland

Thursday 10 October 2013 @ 11.37 a.m. | Crime

With the recent push to crack down on proceeds of illegal crime, culminating in QLD's Criminal Proceeds Confiscation (Unexplained Wealth and Serious Drug Offender Confiscation Order) Amendment Act 2013 (reversing the onus of proof on the defendant), the Australian Federal Police (AFP) have announced upcoming changes to the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (Cth) to bring Commonwealth Legislation in line with the States.

AFP targets will include people who have long been suspected of being significant criminals, but who have avoided charges by using their seniority in gangs to remain removed from the actual criminality while profiting hugely from it.

The unexplained wealth provisions were included in the Commonwealth Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 in 2010, but have never been used because of various weaknesses in the Act. Through a Federal Parliamentary Committee inquiry into the Act in 2011-12, the AFP identified a range of amendments to ensure the scheme could operate as intended.

The unexplained wealth provisions allow the AFP to take civil action to freeze and later confiscate the assets of these criminals, even if they don't have enough evidence to charge them with any criminal offences.

The amended provisions will enhance the already significant powers the AFP-led Commonwealth criminal assets confiscation taskforce uses to strip criminals of their ill-gotten gains. Those other powers have enabled the taskforce - which also includes the expertise of the ACC and the Australian Taxation Office - to freeze $199 million in criminal assets since it was formed in early 2011.

Federal Justice Minister Michael Keenan yesterday said the Government agreed the changes the AFP wants are necessary and would be fast-tracked.

"Arguably the most effective way to combat organised crime is to seize the funds and the assets that they make from their criminal behaviour...We believe that by attacking the very incentive for which people get involved in organised crime it will have a serious impact on stopping them...We are working extensively with our law enforcement agencies to ensure that we put forward the toughest unexplained wealth legislation before the Parliament as soon as it can be done."

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