Proceeds of Crime
Source: gov.uk (2025-03-26)

The SFO traces, restrains and recovers the proceeds of complex economic crime, including fraud, bribery and corruption.

When individuals or companies commit a crime, the law mandates that they must not retain any of the proceeds. This includes any physical assets such as cars or houses that they have acquired with the proceeds of crime.

We pursue these assets from when we first open an investigation, working to uncover, protect and seize assets that have been concealed through trusts and complex corporate ownership structures, or spread across different jurisdictions around the world. Wherever possible, we also use the proceeds of crime to compensate victims, both in the UK and overseas.

We also use the full range of powers under the Proceeds of Crime Act to undertake standalone investigations, including using civil recovery and forfeiture powers to recover criminal property, which does not require a conviction to enforce.

Read the latest news from our Proceeds of Crime and International Assistance division below and follow the SFO on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/71271918/) and X (https://x.com/UKSFO) for regular updates.

Recent Proceeds of Crime action taken by the SFO:

March 2025

The SFO recovered nearly £60,000 in laundered money following a proceeds of crime investigation linked to a major international metal trading scam at RBG Resources plc, prosecuted by the SFO in 2008. The money was uncovered in two shell companies, with £36,000 seized from the accounts of BHUR Ltd on 11 March and a further £23,000 from Mansa Corp Ltd on 25 March. SFO investigators discovered the funds, registered to addresses in Harrow, London, had been moved through multiple companies to conceal their origin. More on this here (https://www.linkedin.com/posts/uksfo_the-serious-fraud-office-sfo-has-recovered-activity-7310242321017556993-NAWl?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAADCK93QBKHBHRFwH53Z83Wsjy4_wiDPmDh8).

January 2025

The SFO secured over £1 million in criminal assets in a confiscation order against the convicted solicitor Timothy Schools. Schools was found to have hidden some of the proceeds of a £100 million fraud with members of his family, disguised as loans. The money recovered will be paid back to the victims. If Schools fails to repay this money, he will face an additional 5 years in prison. More on this here (https://www.linkedin.com/posts/uksfo_today-we-secured-over-1-million-in-criminal-activity-7283101737777782788-T-lJ/).

The SFO secured its first Unexplained Wealth Order (UWO), seeking to recover a £1.5 million Lake District property believed to have been purchased with the proceeds of a £100 million fraud. Claire Schools, the ex-wife of the convicted solicitor Timothy Schools, was ordered to produce information about how the property was obtained. More on this here (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/sfo-secures-first-unexplained-wealth-order-in-100m-fraud-case).

October 2024

The SFO recovered a further £295,000 from Virendra Rastogi, now known as Vareen Kumar or Veerain Kumarr, who was convicted for an international metal trading scam. The money was recovered from two pension funds as part of an ongoing proceeds of crime investigation into Rastogi’s assets, which has recovered nearly £6 million to date. Rastogi was one of three former directors of RBG Resources plc, prosecuted by the SFO in 2008 for operating an international metal trading scam. They were collectively sentenced to around 25 years in prison. More on this here (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/295000-recovered-from-convicted-fraudsters-hidden-pensions).

May 2024

The SFO successfully recovered over £36k in proceeds of crime from the bank account of Emmanuel Okoyomon, the former managing director of the Nigerian state-owned banknote printing company, Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Plc. More on this here (https://tinyurl.com/2ufmsdsc).

February 2024

The SFO secured over £153,000 from Louise Worsell, a former executive we convicted for her role in the £500 million steel trade fraud, who was sent to prison for three years in 2023. More on this here (https://gov.uk/government/news/over-450000-from-ceo-and-a-senior-executive-confiscated).

January 2024

£220,000 was recovered by the SFO to go back to victims of the largest “boiler room” fraud ever uncovered in the UK. The money has been recovered from the convicted fraudster Jeffrey Revell-Reade from the sale of his waterfront Sydney property. More on this here (https://tinyurl.com/39xb4858).

November 2023

A £674,000 house in Ascot was seized from the convicted fraudster, Gerald Smith, after SFO investigators uncovered him to be the property’s true owner. More on this here (https://tinyurl.com/mr4bpayb).

November 2023

The SFO confiscated £250,000 from Achilleas Kallakis, one of the convicted fraudsters behind the UK’s largest ever mortgage fraud, held at the prestigious West London sports club, The Queen’s Club. More on this here (https://gov.uk/government/news/250000-tennis-club-debenture-recovered-from-convicted-fraudster).

August 2023

The SFO successfully applied to the court for management receivers to be appointed in relation to three luxury properties belonging to Gulnara Karimova. More on this here (https://tinyurl.com/ccj39akh).