Putting Robin Hood out of business: a proceeds of crime case study
| Date | 01 January 2006 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/13685200610645193 |
| Pages | 19-26 |
| Published date | 01 January 2006 |
| Author | Anthony Kennedy |
| Subject Matter | Accounting & finance |
Putting Robin Hood out of
business: a proceeds of crime
case study
Anthony Kennedy
Assets Recovery Agency, Belfast, UK
Abstract
Purpose – To demonstrate how the range of tools provided in the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 can be
used in a strategic and integrated way by law enforcement agencies against organised crime groups.
Design/methodology/approach – The case study takes the legend of Robin Hood and reworks the
story, portraying Robin as a godfather of organised crime.
Findings – The paper shows how a combination of criminal confiscation proceedings, civil recovery
proceedings, cash forfeiture proceedings, taxation action and money laundering charges can be used in
an effective way against an organised crime group. It demonstrates how law enforcement should not
just focus on taking away the liberty of criminals but how they should also focus on criminal assets
and criminal markets.
Originality/value – The paper presents a strategic view of dealing with organised crime in an
imaginative and humorous way.
Keywords Crimes, Law enforcement,Money laundering, Criminal forfeiture
Paper type Case study
Previously in Robin Hood...
The Journal of Money Laundering Control (2000) published a money laundering case
study based on the story of Robin Hood. The case study took some liberties with both
English history and the legend of Robin Hood. It supposed, firstly, that Richard the
Lionheart did not die in France in 1199 but rather returned to the throne of England in
1216, the year after King John had signed the Magna Carta and that, secondly, the
heroic Robin became a “godfather” of organised crime in Merry England. The study
was published before the passing of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002[1] and the Serious
and Organised Crime Act 2005[2] and ended with the King considering new legislation.
This paper, with the permission of the author of the original paper, builds on that case
study and picks up the story five years later...
Putting Robin Hood out of business
King Richard knew he had to respond to the threat posed by Robin Hood before Robin
built a political power base financed through criminal assets. The question was how?
There were three things the king recognised Robin did not want to lose: his liberty, his
assets, and his criminal markets. The king’s instincts, as a law enforcement
traditionalist, had always been to seek to prosecute Robin for criminal offences with a
view to convicting and imprisoning him. The king now wondered whether he had
focused on these strategic options in the wrong order. Given the way Robin had
insulated himself from the criminal frontline, the king had recognised that Robin’ s
primary vulnerability lay with his assets.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/1368-5201.htm
Putting Robin
Hood out of
business
19
Journal of Money Laundering Control
Vol. 9 No. 1, 2006
pp. 19-26
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
1368-5201
DOI 10.1108/13685200610645193
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