New police unit launched in crackdown on ‘dodgy’ high street shops
The Government has announced a £30 million crackdown on organised crime gangs using high street businesses to launder money and facilitate wider criminality.
Under the plans, rogue barber shops, vape stores, mini-marts and sweet shops suspected of links to organised crime will face increased raids, closures and cash seizures as part of a three-year enforcement programme.
A new High Street Organised Crime Unit has been established to coordinate activity between the Home Office, police forces, the National Crime Agency, Trading Standards, HMRC and Immigration Enforcement.
The Home Office said £20 million of the funding package will support enhanced law enforcement activity, including a new multi-agency coordination cell based within the National Crime Agency. Another £6 million will go to Trading Standards to strengthen enforcement against sham businesses.
A total of 75 additional officers will be recruited across the NCA, Greater Manchester Police, West Midlands Police and a joint Kent Police and Essex Police unit.
According to the NCA, at least £12 billion in criminal cash is generated in the UK each year, with around £1 billion believed to be laundered through high street businesses including mini-marts, barber shops and vape stores.
The announcement follows Operation Machinize, a multi-agency operation targeting criminal exploitation of high street businesses. The latest phase of the operation saw 2,734 premises visited, 924 arrests made and more than £13 million in suspected criminal proceeds seized or restrained.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said organised crime gangs had been exploiting high streets to “launder their dirty money and undercut honest businesses”.
The Government said it is also reviewing local enforcement powers, including whether closure orders for criminal businesses should be extended to allow premises to remain shut for longer.