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Oligarchs suspected of corruption face being forced to explain source of their wealth Oligarchs suspected of corruption face being forced to explain source of their wealth
(about 11 hours later)
Russian oligarchs suspected of corruption will be forced to account for their luxury lifestyles in the UK in a new crackdown on organised crime, a Government minister has said. Russian oligarchs suspected of involvement in organised crime will be forced to explain to authorities how they are funding their lavish lifestyle, the Government has said.
Security minister Ben Wallace said the “full force of government” would be brought to bear on foreign criminals and corrupt politicians who use Britain as a haven. Security minister Ben Wallace said new powers set to come into force next week will be used as part of a crackdown on gangsters.
Officials will use new unexplained wealth orders (UWOs) – which came into effect this week – to seize suspicious assets and hold until they have been properly accounted for. Foreign criminals and corrupt members of the global elite will see the “full force of government” used against them, he said.
In an interview with The Times, Mr Wallace said: “When we get to you, we will come for you, for your assets and we will make the environment that you live in difficult.” In an interview with The Times, Mr Wallace warned those involved in criminal activity: "When we get to you, we will come for you, for your assets and we will make the environment that you live in difficult."
The move comes as London‘s role as a playground for Russian gangsters and the super rich has been highlighted by the BBC drama series McMafia. New unexplained wealth orders (UWOs) will be used from next week to seize the UK assets of wealthy people suspected of having profited from the proceeds of crime.
Mr Wallace said ministers wanted to exploit the success of the programme – based on the factual book of the same name by the journalist Misha Glenny – to raise public awareness of the issue of corruption. The orders were introduced in the Criminal Finance Act last year but are only now coming into effect. They will force wealthy individuals to explain to UK officials how they acquired assets worth more than £50,000.
“McMafia is one of those things where you realise that fact is ahead of fiction,” he told the paper. Officials estimate that around £90bn of illegal money is laundered through the UK every year.
“It’s a really good portrayal of sharp-suited wealthy individuals, but follow the money and it ends up with a young girl getting trafficked for sex. Mr Wallace said the Government wanted to exploit the success of hit BBC series McMafia to shine a spotlight on the threat posed by international crime networks operating in the UK.
“Beneath the gloss there is real nastiness. So far it’s very close to the truth, the international nature of organised crime and the impunity with which some of these people operate and the brutality of it, is absolutely correct.” The show, based on a book of the same name by Misha Glenny, depicts how some members of the super-rich use London as a hub for a global web of criminal activity and a life of luxury that comes at the expense of those lower down the ladder.
Mr Wallace pointed to the so-called Laundromat case in which ghost companies – many based in the the UK – were used to launder dirty Russian money through western banks as an example of Russian involvement in organised crime. Mr Wallace said: "McMafia is one of those things where you realise that fact is ahead of fiction.
“What we know from the Laundromat expose is that certainly there have been links to the (Russian) state. The Government’s view is that we know what they are up to and we are not going to let it happen any more,” he said. "It's a really good portrayal of sharp-suited wealthy individuals, but follow the money and it ends up with a young girl getting trafficked for sex.
Officials estimate that around £90 billion of illegal funds is laundered through the UK every year. "Beneath the gloss there is real nastiness. So far it's very close to the truth, the international nature of organised crime and the impunity with which some of these people operate and the brutality of it, is absolutely correct."
The establishment of UWOs, as part of the Criminal Finance Act, will enable the authorities to freeze and recover property if individuals are unable to explain how they acquired assets in excess of £50,000. The security minister said those likely to be the subject of UWOs include “iconic” individuals with an international reputation.
PA “Unexplained wealth orders can be used against everyone from a local drug trafficker to an international oligarch or overseas criminal,” he said.
“If they are an MP in a country where they don’t receive a big salary but suddenly they have a nice Knightsbridge townhouse worth millions and they can’t prove how they paid for it, we will seize that asset, we will dispose of it and we will use the proceeds to fund our law enforcement.”
“We are going to go after these iconic individuals, whether they are known about in t in their local community or known about internationally.”
The minister highlighted the Laundromat case, in which 21 ghost companies were used to launder dirty Russian money through banks in the West, as an example of what he said were links between the Russian state and organised crime.
“What we know from the Laundromat exposé is that certainly there have been links to the [Russian] state”, he said. “The government’s view is that we know what they are up to and we are not going to let it happen any more.”