March 29, 2023
Protection for tamariki and wāhine under Criminal Proceeds Recovery Bill
Safe guarding tamariki and wāhine from being wrongly prosecuted under the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act 2009 has been carefully considered by Justice Minister Kiritapu Allan.
” New legislation passed by the Government Tuesday will make it harder for gangs and their leaders to benefit financially from crime that causes considerable harm in our communities” said Minister Allan.
“It tends to be the ones that love and are loved by of those within our communities that are in organised criminal activities, that suffer the most, our wāhine, our tamariki.”
Under the new provisions, if it’s shown that an associate of an organised criminal group couldn’t have funded their assets legitimately, they will be required to prove to the court how they came to possess them, or face having them frozen.
“We’re going after gang leaders and the facilitators of organised crime and hitting them where it hurts – their pockets – by taking their properties, cars, bikes and bling.” said Minister Allan.
The proposed amendments are estimated to return an additional $25 million annually into the Proceeds of Crime Fund. The fund is used to invest in programmes that target organised criminal activity, and address crime-related harm, including the drivers of crime.
Since 2019, police have restrained more than $156m in assets and forfeited more than $44.5m in assets related to organised crime groups and gangs.