Cops fighting money laundering in Greater Manchester seize more than £1m in a year

Cops tackling money laundering in Greater Manchester have now seized more than £1 million, the Manchester Evening News can exclusively reveal.

Officers from GMP’s economic crime unit have been working on Operation Falcon — as it is known — for roughly a year. The project has included establishing a dedicated money laundering team, which has been set up to disrupt the practice.

Money laundering ‘often funds more serious and organised crime in Greater Manchester’, a spokesperson for the force said. To date, detectives working on Operation Falcon have confiscated £1,118,000.

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“This operation has gone from strength to strength,” said Det Supt Joe Harrop, who heads up the economic crime unit. “No matter where the money is hidden our officers will seize, forfeit and then look to recover through court in order for it to be recovered and filtered into communities across Greater Manchester through Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme funding.”

Det Supt Harrop also promised that the hard work has not stopped. He went on: “Last year was a record-breaking year for us at GMP, but will not stop here; with every forfeiture of criminals’ cash, we strengthen our grip on the assets possessed by offenders and suspects, and are targeting them where it hurts by stripping them of their criminal finances.”

Part of that work is down to the public, he added. The cop said: ““Anyone with information about suspicious financial activity can report it to us online through our online crime reporting facility, or by calling 101. You can also report via our Live Chat service on our website: www.gmp.police.uk.

“Details can also be passed anonymously to the independent charity