NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Serious Organised Crime Agency

The Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) is a policing agency in the United Kingdom that acts against organised crime, including the illegal drugs trade, money laundering, and people smuggling. Its principal jurisdiction is England and Wales with more limited powers to operate in Scotland (where some of their activities require the permission of the Lord Advocate, the Scottish Ministers or the SCDEA) and Northern Ireland (where some of their activities require the permission of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland)^[1]. Image File history File links UKPoliceNational. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... A Police Constable of West Yorkshire Police on patrol The United Kingdom (UK) does not have one single police service serving the general public; with the exception of various special police forces and of Northern Ireland (which has one unified force, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI)), police forces... Organized crime or criminal organizations are groups or operations run by criminals, most commonly for the purpose of generating a monetary profit. ... These lollipops, above, were found to contain heroin when inspected by the US Drug Enforcement Administration In jurisdictions where legislation restricts or prohibits the sale of certain popular drugs, it is common for an illegal drugs trade to develop. ... Money laundering is the practice of engaging in financial transactions in order to conceal the identity, source and destination of the money in question. ... People smuggling is a term which is used to describe the illegal and organised smuggling of people across international boundaries, usually for financial gain. ... This article is about the country. ... Her Majestys Advocate, known as the Lord Advocate (Morair Tagraidh in Scottish Gaelic) is the chief legal adviser to the Scottish Executive and the Crown in Scotland for both civil and criminal matters that fall within the devolved powers of the Scottish Parliament. ... The term Scottish Executive is used in two different, but closely-related senses: to denote the executive arm of the legislature (ie. ... The Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) is a national police agency in Scotland responsible for disrupting and dismantling serious organised crime groups; by taking the profit out of such crime and reducing the demand for such products. ... Northern Ireland (Irish: , Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a constituent country of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 kmÂ², about a sixth of the islands total area). ... The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is the British cabinet minister who has responsibility for the government of Northern Ireland. ...

Background

SOCA formally came into being on 1 April 2006 following a merger of the National Crime Squad, the National Criminal Intelligence Service, the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU), the investigative and intelligence sections of HM Revenue & Customs on serious drug trafficking, and the Immigration Service's responsibilities for organised immigration crime. The Serious Fraud Office remains as a separate agency. is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The National Crime Squad is the British Police organization which deals mainly with organized crime and major crimes. ... In the United Kingdom, the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) was set up as a separate body in April 1992 to centralise the gathering and distribution of intelligence on serious and organised criminal matters. ... The National Hi-Tech Crime Unit is a section of the National Crime Squad, a British Police organisation which deals with major crime. ... Her Majestys Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is a new department of the British Government created by the merger of the Inland Revenue and Her Majestys Customs and Excise which came into formal effect on 18 April 2005. ... The Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) is part of the Home Office, a department of the United Kingdom government. ... The Serious Fraud Office is an arm of the Government of the United Kingdom, accountable to the Attorney-General. ...

The creation of the agency was announced on 9 February 2004 as one of the elements of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005, which also restricts protests and demonstrations in central London, and alters powers of arrest and the use of search warrants. is the 40th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (SOCPA) (2005 c. ... Central London is a much-used but unofficial and vaguely defined term for the most inner part of London, the capital of England. ...

Parallels have been drawn between the organisation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation of the United States: indeed, parts of the press have labelled SOCA as the "British FBI." ^[2] The duties and functions of SOCA, however, are more akin to that of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Additionally, comparisons with the FBI and ICE are not strictly accurate due to non-federal nature of the United Kingdom constitution, and the completely different structure of policing. Police forces will continue to deal with most crime whilst SOCA will assist forces and also work independently with regards to serious organised crime. SOCA is an intelligence agency which has the role of "reducing harm", not specifically the arrest and conviction of offenders. F.B.I. and FBI redirect here. ... Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the largest and primary investigative arm of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and is responsible for identifying, investigating, and dismantling vulnerabilities regarding the nations border, economic, transportation, and infrastructure security. ... A map displaying todays federations. ... The Constitution of the United Kingdom is the uncodified body of law and convention under which the United Kingdom is governed. ...

Former National Crime Squad detective Peter Blekesley said SOCA "needs to be elite. It needs to be secretive to a certain degree. To catch people in the highest echelon of organised crime needs a lot of dedication, a lot of expertise, a lot of officers who are multi-skilled, and devotion to the task. It's not an easy thing to take out the top people who are top of the criminal pile."^[3]

The Agency has been criticised by civil libertarians. They have pointed out that its officers, unlike traditional police officers, are not required to swear a Police Oath to uphold the law but are civil servants answerable only to the government. Designated SOCA officers will, however, have powers of arrest equivalent to those of sworn police officers. For the first time in the history of the United Kingdom, employees of a central government agency will have full police powers of arrest, as opposed to the specific powers enjoyed by Immigration or Customs Officers. These powers are restricted in Scotland and Northern Ireland, however many SOCA officers will have no powers whilst others will have either customs or immigration powers depending on operations. Civil liberties are protections from the power of governments. ... See also Libertarianism and Libertarian Party Libertarian,is a term for person who has made a conscious and principled commitment, evidenced by a statement or Pledge, to forswear violating others rights and usually living in voluntary communities: thus in law no longer subject to government supervision. ... All Police officers take an oath to uphold the law. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ...

According to Home Office figures Organised Crime costs the UK around £20 billion each year, with some estimates putting the figure as high as £40 billion.^[4] UKP may stand for: Unbounded Knapsack Problem, see Unbounded Knapsack Problem for the algorithm Pound Sterling, the currency (correctly termed GBP) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Administration

The agency is an executive non-departmental public body sponsored by, but operationally independent from, the Home Office. It is funded by central government, with a provisional budget for 2006/7 of £457m, of which £416m funds on-going resources and £41m is capital investment.^[5]. It will have around 4,200 employees, of which 400 are backroom staff. Of the remaining workforce, half will be criminal investigators and the other half will focus on analysis and intelligence. SOCA will co-operate closely with the police, intelligence agencies, the Assets Recovery Agency, HM Revenue and Customs, foreign police forces and others. The modern concept of Small Office and Home Office or SoHo , or Small or Home Office deals with the category of business which can be from 1 to 10 workers. ... The Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) was established in the United Kingdom under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to reduce crime by confiscating the proceeds of crime, including a new power of civil recovery through the High Court. ... Her Majestys Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is a new department of the British Government to be created by the merger of the Inland Revenue and HM Customs and Excise. ...

It is led by a board with 11 members. The non-executive chairman, responsible for the overall approach of SOCA, is Sir Stephen Lander, a former head of MI5. The other non-executive directors of the board are Stephen Barrett, Elizabeth France, Ken Jarrold, Janet Paraskeva and General Sir Roger Wheeler. Day-to-day leadership is provided by the Director General, Bill Hughes, who is able to designate SOCA officers as having the powers of a police constable, a customs officer, or an immigration officer. The other executive directors of the board are David Bolt, Malcolm Cornberg, Paul Evans and Trevor Pearce.^[6] Sir Stephen Lander (b. ... MI-5 redirects here. ... Janet Paraskeva Janet Paraskeva born 1946 in Newport, Monmouthshire is an Welsh-Greek-Cypriot from the United Kingdom. ... General Sir Roger Wheeler GCB , CBE was Chief of the General Staff, the professional head of the British Army, between 1997 and 2000. ... William Bill Hughes, born August 11, 1950, is the Director General of Britains Serious Organised Crime Agency. ... Paul Evans may refer to any of the following people Paul Evans (basketball coach), an American college basketball coach Paul Evans (poet) British poet Paul Evans (b. ...

The board has decided that around 40% of its effort should be devoted to combating drug trafficking, 25% to tackling organised immigration crime, around 10% to fraud, 15% on other organised crime and the remaining 10% on supporting other law enforcement agencies.^[7]

The organisation has been split up into four directorates: intervention (finding ways to obstruct organised criminals); intelligence (building up a detailed picture of organised crime gangs); enforcement (investigating organised crime gangs); and corporate services (the administrative back up to the operational side).

Intelligence role and secrecy

SOCA operates from at least 40 offices across the UK. SOCA officers are empowered to perform a number of surveillance roles traditionally associated with British intelligence services such as MI5, although, unlike MI5 officers, some designated SOCA officers enjoy powers of arrest. SOCA is exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act. MI-5 redirects here. ... Freedom of information legislation in the United Kingdom is controlled by two Acts of Parliament, which both came into force on January 1, 2005. ...

Money laundering

SOCA takes over responsibility for dealing with suspicious activity reports (SARs), previously made to NCIS under the money laundering legislation. NCIS received just under 200,000 SARs in 2005. Despite criticism from professional representative bodies that the disclosure rules are too broad, SOCA has said that up to one in three SARs lead to or add substantially to terrorism investigations; that HMRC estimates that around one in five SARs identifies new subjects of interest, and one in four SARs lead to direct tax enquiries; and that many arrests and confiscations of criminal assets.^[8] A Suspicious Activity Report (or SAR) is a report regarding suspicious or potentially suspicious financial activity, filed with FinCEN (the FINancial Crimes Enforcement Network), an arm of the United States Department of the Treasury. ... Ensign of HM Revenue & Customs Her Majestys Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is a new department of the British Government created by the merger of the Inland Revenue and Her Majestys Customs and Excise which came into formal effect on 18 April 2005. ...

Child Protection

The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) is technically part of SOCA and its officers are SOCA officers. However, CEOP largely operates separately to the bulk of SOCA and will probably be funded differently. The task of online child protection had previously been (in part) the responsibility of the NHTCU. The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) formed April 2006, is a UK cross agency and cross business department of the Serious Organised Crime Agency, which is tasked to work both nationally and internationally to bring online child sex offenders to the UK courts [1] // Working across the UK...

Computer crime

Officers from the former National Hi-Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU) became SOCA's e-crime unit. However, the remit of this unit is much narrower than that of the body it replaced. In particular, the NHTCU had established a confidentiality charter to encourage victims of computer crime to contact the police in confidence, because many corporate victims in particular do not report attacks due to fears of bad publicity. The loss of the confidentiality charter has been widely criticised. ^[9]^[10] The National Hi-Tech Crime Unit is a section of the National Crime Squad, a British Police organisation which deals with major crime. ... Computer crime, cybercrime, e-crime, hi-tech crime or electronic crime generally refers to criminal activity where a computer or network is the source, tool, target, or place of a crime. ...

See also

Enabling legislation for the British national identity card was passed under the Identity Cards Act 2006 [1]. The multi-billion pound scheme [2] has yet to enter procurement. ... There are a number of policing agencies in the United Kingdom. ... Police Intelligence is a section of each of the various British police forces. ... The Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) is a national police agency in Scotland responsible for disrupting and dismantling serious organised crime groups; by taking the profit out of such crime and reducing the demand for such products. ...

External links

is the 11th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

Categories: United Kingdom intelligence agencies | 2006 establishments | Intelligence agencies | Law enforcement agencies of the United Kingdom | Mob-busters Independent Television (generally known as ITV, but also as ITV Network) is a public service network of British commercial television broadcasters, set up under the Independent Television Authority (ITA) to provide competition to the BBC. ITV is the oldest commercial television network in the UK. Since 1990 and the Broadcasting... is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 73rd day of the year (74th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 73rd day of the year (74th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... There are a number of policing agencies in the United Kingdom. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Avon & Somerset Constabulary is a police force in England covering the county of Somerset and the districts of South Gloucestershire, Bristol, North Somerset and Bath and North East Somerset; these districts were the now defunct county of Avon hence the forces name. ... Bedfordshire Police is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the county of Bedfordshire and the district of Luton in England. ... Cambridgeshire Constabulary is the Home Office police force in England responsible for policing the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire. ... Cheshire Constabulary is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the English non-metropolitan county of Cheshire and the unitary authorities of Halton (including Runcorn, and Widnes) and Warrington. ... City Police Mounted Section officer The City of London Police is the Home Office police force responsible for the City of London, including the Middle and Inner Temple. ... Cleveland Police is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the area of former county of Cleveland in North East England. ... Cumbria Constabulary is the Home Office police force in England covering the county of Cumbria. ... Derbyshire Constabulary is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the county of Derbyshire, England. ... Devon and Cornwall Constabulary is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the counties of Devon and Cornwall and the unitary authorities of Plymouth, Torbay and the Isles of Scilly. ... Dorset Police is the Home Office police force with the responsibility of policing the English county of Dorset. ... Durham Constabulary is a Home Office police force with the responsibilty of policing the county of Durham in the north east of England. ... Essex Police is a Home Office (territorial) police force with responsibility for policing the county of Essex in south east England. ... Gloucestershire Constabulary is the police force covering the non-metropolitan county of Gloucestershire in England. ... Greater Manchester Police (GMP) is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester, in North West England. ... Hampshire Constabulary is the Home Office police force responsible for policing Hampshire and the Isle of Wight in southern England. ... Hertfordshire Constabulary is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the county of Hertfordshire in England. ... Humberside Police is the police force for Humberside in England. ... Kent Police is the police force covering Kent in England, including the unitary authority of Medway. ... Lancashire Constabulary is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the ceremonial county of Lancashire in the North West England. ... Leicestershire Constabulary is a British police force that covers Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland in England. ... Lincolnshire Police is the police force covering the non-metropolitan county of Lincolnshire in the East Midlands of England. ... Merseyside Merseyside Police is the police force covering Merseyside in North West England. ... The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) is the name currently used by the territorial police force which is responsible for Greater London other than the City of London (the responsibility of the City of London Police). ... The Norfolk Constabulary is the Home Office police force which covers the county of Norfolk in England. ... North Yorkshire Police is the police force covering the non-metropolitan county of North Yorkshire and the unitary authority of York in northern England. ... Northamptonshire Police is the Home Office police force responsible for policing Northamptonshire in the East Midlands of England. ... Northumbria Police is the police force for the north English counties of Northumberland and Tyne and Wear. ... Nottinghamshire Police is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the shire county of Nottinghamshire and the unitary authority of Nottingham in the East Midlands of England. ... South Yorkshire Police is the police force covering South Yorkshire in England. ... Staffordshire Police is the Home Office police force responsible for policing Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent in the West Midlands of England. ... Suffolk Constabulary is the Home Office police force responsible for policing Suffolk in the East of England, United Kingdom. ... Surrey Police is the Home Office police force the county of Surrey in the south of England The force is lead by Chief Constable Bob Quick and has its headquarters at Mount Browne, Guildford, Surrey. ... Sussex Police is the police force covering East Sussex, West Sussex and Brighton and Hove in southern England. ... Thames Valley Police is one of the largest Home Office police services in England and the largest non-metropolitan one, covering 2200 sq mi (5,700 kmÂ²) and a population of 2. ... Warwickshire Police is the police force which polices Warwickshire in England. ... West Mercia Constabulary is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the counties of Shropshire (including Telford and Wrekin), Herefordshire and Worcestershire in England. ... The West Midlands county The West Midlands Police is the police force covering the West Midlands county in England. ... West Yorkshire Police is the police force covering West Yorkshire in the United Kingdom. ... Wiltshire Constabulary is the police force covering Wiltshire and Swindon in south-west England. ... This article is about the country. ... Map showing the council areas of Scotland with the ones in the police area highlighted. ... Map showing the council areas of Scotland with Dumfries and Galloway highlighted. ... Fife Police bike photographed at Kirkcaldy police station. ... Grampian Police are a police force in north east of Scotland, covering the borough of the City of Aberdeen and the counties of Aberdeenshire and Moray. ... Lothian and Borders Police is the police force for the Scottish council areas of the City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian, Scottish Borders and West Lothian. ... Map showing the council areas of Scotland, with the ones in the police area highlighted. ... The Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) is a national police agency in Scotland responsible for disrupting and dismantling serious organised crime groups; by taking the profit out of such crime and reducing the demand for such products. ... Strathclyde Police is the police force for the Scottish council areas of Argyll and Bute, City of Glasgow, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire and West Dunbartonshire. ... Map showing the council areas of Scotland with the ones in the police area highlighted. ... This article is about the country. ... Dyfed-Powys Police (Welsh: Heddlu Dyfed Powys) is the Home Office police force responsible for policing Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire (which make up Dyfed), and Powys in Wales. ... Gwent Police (Welsh: Heddlu Gwent) is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the local authority areas of Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Monmouthshire, Newport and Torfaen in southeast Wales. ... North Wales Police (Welsh: Heddlu Gogledd Cymru) is the Home Office police force responsible for policing the preserved counties of Clwyd and Gwynedd in north Wales. ... South Wales Police (Welsh: ) is one of the four Home Office police forces in Wales. ... Northern Ireland (Irish: , Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a constituent country of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 kmÂ², about a sixth of the islands total area). ... The Police Service of Northern Ireland (Irish: SeirbhÃs PÃ³ilÃneachta Thuaisceart na hÃ‰ireann) is the police service that covers Northern Ireland. ... A Special Police Force is a designation used in various countries for differing purposes. ... The British Transport Police (BTP) is a non-Home Office national police service responsible for policing the railway system throughout Great Britain. ... The Civil Nuclear Constabulary (CNC) is an armed non-Home Office police force that protects civil nuclear installations and substances in the United Kingdom. ... The Ministry of Defence Police (or MOD Police; MDP; coloquially referred to as MOD Plods) is a non-Home Office police force in the United Kingdom. ... During the First World War, British secret services were divided into numbered sections referred to as Military Intelligence, department number X: this was shortened to MIX. MI5 (officially the Security Service) and MI6 (officially the Secret Intelligence Service) are often still referred to using these names by members of the... The Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) is a British intelligence agency responsible for providing signals intelligence (SIGINT) and information assurance. ... MI-5 redirects here. ... The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 (Military Intelligence, Section 6),[1] is the United Kingdoms external intelligence agency. ... The Defence Intelligence Staff (DIS) is an element of the United Kingdoms Ministry of Defence, responsible for collection and assessment of all-source intelligence. ... The Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC) was founded in 1936 as a sub-committee of the Committee of Imperial Defence. ... MI1 or British Military Intelligence, Section 1 was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office. ... MI2, the British Military Intelligence Section 2 (now defunct), was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office. ... MI3, the British Military Intelligence Section 3 (now defunct), was a division of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office. ... Military Intelligence 4 (MI4) was the British intelligence map support unit in World War II. References Zabecki, David T. (1999). ... MI7, the British Military Intelligence Section 7 (now defunct) was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office. ... The name MI8 was temporarily applied to a cryptography effort mounted within the US Army during World War I. Herbert Yardley was assigned to this unit during the War, and after it continued his cryptographic work during the 1920s at what Yardley called the American Black Chamber in his book... MI9, the British Military Intelligence Section 9 (now defunct), was a department of the British War Office during World War II. It was charged with aiding resistance fighters in Nazi-controlled Europe and recovering Allied troops who found themselves behind enemy lines (e. ... MI10, or Military Intelligence, section 10, was a British Weapons and technical analysis during World War II. The group was merged into Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). ... MI11, or Military Intelligence, section 11, was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office and acted as Field Intelligence Police. ... MI12, the British Military Intelligence Section 12 (now defunct), was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office. ... MI13 is the Reconnaissance Branch of the British Secret Service. ... MI14, or British Military Intelligence, Section 14 was an intelligence agency of the War Office, which specialised in intelligence about Germany. ... MI15, the British Military Intelligence Section 15 (now defunct), was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office. ... MI16, the British Military Intelligence Section 16 (now defunct), was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office. ... MI17, or Military Intelligence, section 17, was the secretariat to the other departments of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... MI19 was a division of the British War Office in World War II responsible for torturing German civilans and POWs. ...

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