Prosecutors proactively target illegal assets under new CPS strategies

Prosecutors from across the organisation will now focus on putting asset recovery at the forefront of prosecution strategy, ensuring that hard-earned money taken from victims and businesses is returned to them.

Prosecutors have already managed to recover more than £530 million from Confiscation Orders in the last five years, returning over £100 million to victims of crime in the process.

The news comes as the CPS launches new strategies designed to underpin how the organisation responds to serious organised crime and international threats for the remainder of the decade.

The Serious Economic and Organised Crime (SEOC) Strategy 2030 and the International Strategy 2030 outline how the CPS will strengthen prosecutions, disrupt criminal networks and protect the public in a world where offenders increasingly use digital and cyber technologies for their illegal activities.

The strategies will enable prosecutors to keep pace with threats that cost the UK’s economy billions of pounds every year and threaten to significantly impact the lives of victims in England and Wales.

Further, these new strategies will improve the CPS’ ability to target domestic criminals who have fled abroad, as well as prosecutors’ capacity to gather key evidence that stretches beyond the borders of England and Wales.

Recovering criminal assets

Stephen Parkinson, Director of Public Prosecutions, said: “Our focus is on tackling crimes that cause the greatest harm including large-scale fraud, cyber crime, money laundering, organised immigration crime and modern slavery.”

Parkinson continued: “We have a duty to ensure crime doesn’t pay. These strategies renew our emphasis on recovering criminal assets and removing financial incentives that drive organised crime. They’re growing increasingly sophisticated, are technology‑enabled and international in reach.”

Further, Parkinson noted: “We are already responding to threats by strengthening specialist capability, working more closely with law enforcement from the outset of investigations and making sure asset recovery is considered at an earlier stage in the prosecution process.”

Parkinson concluded: “Serious economic and organised crime is constantly changing. We cannot afford for the CPS’ response to be static.”

New strategies 

The new strategies will bring:

Earlier and stronger prosecutions

Prosecutors will engage earlier with police and investigators to shape cases, identify the full scale of offending and improve outcomes 

Crime that doesn’t pay

Asset recovery and financial disruption will be prioritised, directly targeting the profits that drive organised crime

Focus on national and border security

The strategies strengthen the CPS’ role where organised crime overlaps with terrorism, hostile state activity and organised immigration crime 

Modernisation through exploring new technologies

Looking at the ethical and responsible use of emerging technologies to improve how prosecutors manage large volumes of digital evidence, in turn supporting more effective case preparation 

Stronger international co-operation

International considerations will become a routine part of case strategy rather than being a specialist afterthought

Affecting millions of people

Fraud and cyber crime affect millions of people every year, with online chatrooms and gaming platforms increasingly offering criminals the chance to target – and, in some instances, blackmail – children and vulnerable people.

Modern slavery and people smuggling networks, which exploit and endanger lives both at home and abroad, are also set to face tougher prosecutions.

The CPS is committing to a stronger and more joined-up response to these crimes, working with international partners to pursue perpetrators wherever they operate. Prosecutors will also be upskilled to handle the most complex cases with confidence, including new training on economic crime, modern slavery, firearms offences and more in order to ensure they understand the full breadth of modern offending.

The strategies also acknowledge a blurring of lines between organised crime, terrorism and hostile state activity, while setting out how the CPS will contribute towards national and border security through early legal advice, disruption‑focused prosecution strategies and close collaboration with criminal justice partners.

The International Strategy 2030 reflects the reality that modern crime increasingly crosses borders, with evidence, victims, suspects and criminal assets often located overseas. It sets out how the CPS will embed international awareness across the organisation such that prosecutors are confident in identifying and managing international elements as part of everyday casework.

It also focuses on improving the speed and quality of international co-operation, making better use of technology and data and ensuring international expertise is accessible right across the CPS.

Beyond individual cases, the strategy outlines how the CPS will use its international insight to support other prosecution agencies, contribute to policy and legislative development and strengthen partnerships with overseas prosecutors and international networks alike.