JCF receives eight vehicles forfeited under Proceeds of Crime Act

 

 

 

Eight motor vehicles forfeited under the Proceeds of Crime Act have been handed over to the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) to boost the operational capacity of its anti-organised crime and financial investigations units.

 

The Financial Investigations Division (FID) handed over the vehicles to the JCF's Counter-Terrorism and Organised Crime (C-TOC) branch, following the successful prosecution of matters involving breaches of the Proceeds of Crime Act. 

 

The vehicles forfeited to the Crown will support C-TOC's operational capacity, including its Constabulary Financial Unit and Firearms and Narcotics Investigation Division (FNID).

 

Keith Darien, Principal Director of Financial Crimes Investigations at the FID, says the asset recovery is both a deterrent and a practical benefit to law enforcement.  

 

"This handover is a clear example of how our collaboration with the JCF is multilayered to include investigations, prosecutions and recovery that can translate into real operational support for C-TOC. When the public supports the FID and our partner law enforcement agencies in combating crime, the country benefits. Even at a modest scale, asset recovery can reduce pressure on government resources by returning the proceeds of crime to strengthen the crime-fighting machinery. This is what it looks like to remove the benefits from crime," he stressed. 

 

Six of the eight vehicles were forfeited from fraud matters, with one forfeited from a corruption case and one from a cybercrime matter. 

 

The total estimated market value is approximately $7.39 million. 

 

Meanwhile, Senior Superintendent of Police (Acting) Patrae Rowe, Director of the FNID, said Thursday's handing over of the vehicles by the Financial Investigations Division will strengthen the operational mobility and add value to the Firearms and Narcotics Investigation Division. 

 

"It will allow for quicker and more responsive action without diverting already burdened police resources that could be used otherwise. This handover demonstrates what coordinated law enforcement can achieve. Assets linked to criminality are recovered through due process and redirected into public safety. It is a tangible example of partnership in action and it reinforces the broader point that when the public supports the work of FNID and FID, the combined efforts redound to the benefits of the country and the Jamaican people," said the superintendent.