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Asset Searches - Case History
A multi-national company was defrauded of millions of pounds by an audacious internal theft. As is so often the case, the perpetrators were very senior employees who had been with the company for many years. The client had gained sufficient evidence from internal investigations and police enquiries to support the arrest of those responsible. The problem now facing the company was whether they could recover any of the stolen funds. The money had been well hidden and the conspirators were saying nothing.
Working closely with the company's lawyers and keeping police informed, the investigators set about their confidential enquiries. After painstaking work they accounted for almost the entire sum; they provided hard evidence of the process of theft and laundering; they identified the assets which had been purchased, including property, vehicles and businesses and evidentially linked these in turn to the thieves. The enquiry lasted for five months. The skills employed covered the entire spectrum of a modern multi-disciplinary investigation team: forensic accounting, computer forensics, interviews, surveillance, truly creative thinking and the utilisation of a network of trusted agents and confidential sources of information around the world.
The matter concluded with international freezing and disclosure orders served, assets seized in several jurisdictions on four continents, followed by successful civil and criminal proceedings to effect recovery. It is true to say that during this enquiry the client company, already hurt by a substantial loss, and hurt more by shareholder, regulatory issues and loss of reputation, was required to fund a relatively substantial operation by investigators. The legal costs proved greater than the investigative costs. The result, however, was that the multi-million pound loss had been reduced to only about 15% of the original figure. Not surprisingly the recovery of the funds was more vital to the survival of the company than the arrest and prosecution of the offenders. |
