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1 Briefing paper for Policing and Crime Commissioners East Midlands Special Operations Unit

Brie Policing and Crime Commissioners - Derbyshire … … ·  · 2012-08-09The Unit ensures integration with other UK Law Enforcement partners (SOCA, HMRC, ... this document given

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Briefi ng paper for Policing and Crime Commissioners

East Midlands Special Operations Unit

2

Introduction and

backgroundThe East Midlands Special Operations Unit

(EMSOU) is a collaborative unit shared by the

fi ve police forces of Derbyshire, Leicestershire,

Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and

Nottinghamshire. It provides the East Midlands

with the capability to respond to the most

strategic threats from organised crime, terrorism

and major criminality which collectively pose

the highest risk to the communities of the East

Midlands and national security.

It comprises fi ve main areas

of business:

Serious Organised Crime

Major Crime

Intelligence

Forensics (currently Derbyshire,

Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire)

Counter Terrorism

These units have been established as a result

of detailed baseline assessments coupled with

expert professional opinion and have been

ratifi ed by the fi ve force Chief Constables and

Chairs of the respective Police Authorities. This

is formalised in the Section 23 Police Act 1996

collaboration agreement and the fi ve force

fi nancial contributions are in line with the Home

Offi ce formula grant.

Nottinghamshire 27.6%

Derbyshire 22%

Leicestershire 23.1%

Lincolnshire 12.6%

Northamptonshire 14.7%

EMSOU complements the strategic direction set

by the Home Offi ce under:

❚ Local to Global; Reducing the Risk from

Organised Crime - Home Offi ce, Local to

Global: Reducing the Risk from Organised

Crime, July 2011

❚ Shadow Strategic Policing Requirement -

Home Offi ce, November 2011

❚ Contest: The United Kingdom’s strategy for

countering terrorism - Home Offi ce, July 2011

The Unit ensures integration with other UK Law

Enforcement partners (SOCA, HMRC, UKBA

and the Security Services) and has an advanced

police operating model that enables a symbiotic

approach, providing a regional dimension and

the vital links between local communities and

both national and international work streams to

combat the threats from terrorism and organised

crime. EMSOU provides the linkage from national

agencies to neighbourhood policing.

EMSOU’s collaborative working provides a

cohesive approach in the East Midlands and is the

most cost effective means of providing essential

specialist police services to mitigate and reduce

serious harm within the region. EMSOU is centrally

managed by a regionally appointed Deputy Chief

Constable and further governance is provided by

a management board and the Joint Committee of

Police Chiefs and Police Authorities.

3

The development of EMSOU has been incremental

and professionally considered at each stage;

1999-2001 Regional Discussions by the

heads of crime and initial

proposals made to Chief Offi cers

2002 EMSOU created with a

dedicated undercover and test

purchase unit

2002 A legal Collaboration agreement

with shared liability signed by all

5 Chief Constables and Police

Authorities

2003-2004 Further development discussions

by the heads of crime with the

lead ACC for the region

2004 Agreement to create an

Intelligence Unit

2005 HMIC Report into policing

structures identifi ed signifi cant

risk from serious and organised

crime to the East Midlands

region

2005 Regional Chief Offi cers agreed

to EMSOU expansion to include

dedicated operational teams

2006 Home Offi ce Funding Support

given for the EMSOU expansion

2007 EMSOU operational surveillance

and investigation structure

created

2008 Bespoke accommodation

opened and EMSOU identifi ed

as the key collaborative project

for the region

2009-2011 Continued expansion work

with further ‘functionality’ to

include technical surveillance,

asset recovery and regional

review teams

2011 Launch of Regional Serious and

Organised Crime and Major

Crime Units

2 National organised

crime risk and threatOrganised crime is complex; however the

overriding dynamic is to facilitate fi nancial gain.

Broad estimates value the economic and social

costs it causes to the UK at between £20 billion

and £40 billion per year. (A caveat should be

afforded to all references to such estimates in

this document given the nature of the criminal

economy. This is a very conservative fi gure

when the estimated cost of individual crime

types amount to a much more substantial

total. Nevertheless organised crime is currently

considered by the Government to be one of the

most strategic threats to the UK and is a tier 2

threat within the National Security Strategy). As

is too often the case the effects of organised

crime are felt hardest in the UK’s most deprived

communities.

An Organised Crime Group (OCG) is defi ned

in the Local to Global strategic document as

‘individuals, normally working with others, with the

capacity and capability to commit serious crime

on a continuing basis, which includes elements of

planning, control and coordination, and benefi ts

those involved’.

4

A national OCG mapping system is utilised that

enables forces and agencies to identify and

assess the intent, capability and criminality of

each OCG and this is represented by a threat

score. This informs tasking processes and allows

the prioritisation of resources.

The total number of OCG’s and members

nationally as of April 2012:

2.1 Drugs supply

The use of illegal drugs, particularly Class A

drugs, causes signifi cant harm to the social and

economic well-being of the country as a whole,

including to our reputation overseas. A recent

government report into serious organised crime

estimated the cost of illegal drug markets to the

UK to be approximately £17.6 billion per year.

The level of Class A drug usage, specifi cally

heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, and ecstasy, has

increased from 2.7% to 3.7% of the population

in the last ten years. This is mainly due to the

increase in use of cocaine powder. Criminals

from Pakistan and other south Asian countries,

and British criminals with a variety of ethnic

backgrounds, are also well-established in the

supply and distribution of heroin, particularly in the

Midlands.

The UK wholesale cannabis market is worth in

excess of £1 billion a year. Substantial quantities

of cannabis resin and herbal cannabis continue

to be imported into the UK. Cannabis remains

the most widely produced and consumed

illicit substance globally. SOCA estimated that

approximately 270 tonnes annually of cannabis is

required in the UK to satisfy user demand.

National analysis shows that commercial

cultivation of cannabis continues to pose a

signifi cant risk to the UK. Increasing numbers of

organised crime groups are diverting into this area

of criminality; their perception is that it is a low-risk

highly profi table criminal business.*

The number of commercial cultivation of cannabis

farms continues to rise although this increase

has stabilised. A total of 7,865 were identifi ed in

2011/12 compared to 3,032 recorded in 2007/08

(an increase of 159%).*

* Serious and Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) – the agency responsible

for tackling national and international organised crime.

* Association of Chief Police Offi cers (ACPO) – the 43 police forces of

England and Wales

* United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) – the agency responsible for

the protection of the UK border, visas and immigration.

* National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) – this is government funded

and run by the City of London Police, which is the National lead force

for fraud in partnership with police forces and the public and

private sector.

* Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) – the agency required to

collect and administer taxes as well as border and frontier protection.

* Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) - the police force of

Northern Ireland.

Agency OCG’s % of

OCG’s

Nominals % of

Nominals

SOCA* 4240* 56% 5366 19%

ACPO* 2515 34% 18936 69%

UKBA* 475 6% 1806 6%

NFIB* 157 2% 1070 4%

HMRC* 66 1% 381 1%

PSNI* 48 1% 190 1%

TOTAL 7501 100% 27423 100%

National OCG total

SOCA

56% ACPO

34%

UKBA

6%

NFIB

2%

HMRC

1%

PNSI

1%

5

The UK Commercial Cultivation of Cannabis

Problem Profi le highlights that both indigenous

and South East Asian OCGs are linked to

Cannabis Cultivations in the UK with a growing

degree of co-operation between them. There are

identifi ed gaps in intelligence around the extent

and role played by human traffi ckers bringing

‘gardeners’ into the UK who will in effect run the

cultivation on behalf of the main criminal gang.

While money laundering methods employed by

SE Asian OCGs are known it is the methodologies

employed by indigenous OCGs that provide the

large intelligence gap.*

*Taken from the UK Commercial Cultivation of Cannabis National Problem

Profi le 2012.

2.2 Firearms

The availability and use of fi rearms by criminals

makes the criminal world more volatile and

puts innocent members of the public and law

enforcement offi cers at risk of physical and

psychological harm. Firearms crime also causes

economic and social harm to the UK through

increased costs in terms of law enforcement,

criminal justice, prison and probation services

and health service expenditure. It has a deeply

corrosive effect on the well-being of communities

and damages public confi dence in the rule of law.

Fear of fi rearms crime by the public is, relatively

speaking, much higher than for other types of

violent crime and some communities in the UK

perceive that they have become stigmatised as

‘gun culture hotspots’. (The impact this has upon

the region appears at 3.3)

Number of nominals linked to Firearms related

OCG activity:

2.3 Money laundering

The United Nations Organisation on Drugs and

Crime (UNODC) suggests that worldwide total

criminal proceeds are likely to amount to some

3.6% of global GDP, equivalent to 2.1 trillion US

dollars. There are 635 OCGs nationally with

potential assets of over £1 million and 93 OCGs

potentially with assets of over £10 million in

July 2011.

Most organised criminal activity is directly or

indirectly aimed at making money. The ability

to disguise or “launder” this money to prevent it

being associated with criminal activity is a major

objective for organised crime groups. Organised

criminals will often make use of corrupt specialists

and professionals as well as various businesses

that may operate in a semi-legitimate manner to

facilitate this.

Money laundering occurs in almost every country

in the world and a typical scheme may involve

transferring money through several countries in

order to obscure its origins. Other types of money

laundering are far more simplistic and utilise ‘semi-

legitimate’ cash businesses as a means of moving

the criminal money. A recent response was the

withdrawal from circulation of the 500 euro note to

stem the problem.

Agency Firearms

converter/re-activater

Supplier (fi rearms)

ACPO 15 196

HMRC 0 0

NFIB 0 0

PSN 0 5

SOCA 11 173

UKBA 0 1

6

2.4 Human traffi cking

It is diffi cult to assess the scale of people

smuggling (illegal entry) and human traffi cking

(exploitation), however the former is believed

to exceed the latter. Both provide organised

criminals with opportunities to exploit migrants,

often placing them at physical risk in order to

make money. In the case of people smuggling, the

physical risk occurs mostly in transit, when various

clandestine means of travel are used, some

of them hazardous. Human traffi cking victims

continue to be exploited once they have arrived at

their destination, and are controlled often through

the use of violence and intimidation.

2.5 Cyber crime

Though relatively new, the cost to the UK of

computer enabled crime is estimated at £27

billion. It broadly manifests itself in three ways:

by allowing organised criminals to exploit new

technology to commit established crimes, such

as fraud, on an industrial scale; the distributed

denial of service attacks (hacking and the unlawful

disruption of computers and networks) and

by creating new crimes such as ‘phishing’ for

personal data or hacking.

2.6 HGV crime

Road freight crime is relatively low risk to commit

and potentially highly profi table. As such, it

attracts organised criminals. Some organised

crime groups are known to have made millions

of pounds from road freight crime. Organised

road freight criminals travel extensively to commit

offences. (The East Midlands region is impacted

upon by West Yorkshire OCG’s committing these

offences along the A1/M1 corridor particularly in

Northamptonshire).

2.7 Olympic games

The London 2012 Olympic Games will be one of

the largest events ever staged in the UK, with a

number of training camps based in the region,

this will present organised criminals with a range

of money-making opportunities. Mass marketing

fraud, organised immigration crime, intellectual

property crime, cyber crime and money

laundering are the main threats with criminal

activity starting well in advance of the Games

themselves.

3 Regional organised

crime risk and threatThere are a number of ‘signal events’ that have

occurred over recent years in the East Midlands

highlighting the threat, risk and harm associated

with serious and organised crime;

❚ The carefully planned revenge execution of

Joan and John Stirland in Lincolnshire by an

organised crime group from Nottingham

❚ The gang killing of a 15 year old schoolboy,

Kadeem Blackwood, in Derby - a killing the

direct result of gang and gang rivalry

❚ The ‘drive by’ shooting of 14yrs old Danielle

Beccan in Nottingham

A number of individual crime types exist within

each criminality strand. For example, drugs

activity has fi fteen crime types that include heroin,

cocaine distribution, amphetamine, cutting agents

and LSD for example. In contrast the harm from

fi rearms criminality is split over two categories;

commodity (fi rearms or ammunition importation,

exportation or supply) and violent criminal activity

(criminal use of fi rearms). Whilst this now presents

7

law enforcement with a better understanding of

the extent of organised crime it is not the entire

picture with an element of the unknown still

remaining.

All current OCGs identifi ed through the National

OCGM process, that impact on Regional Forces,

are detailed in a separate confi dential document

presented to attendees at the Regional Tasking

meeting.

Regional comparison of OCG’s nationally as of

April 2012:

Each individual region has a different number of

recorded OCGs which are based upon the level of

OCG development and resources applied within

each force or region. This should be considered

as a ‘developing picture’ of OCGs within the UK

and not the defi nitive position.

Regional overview of OCGs that are mapped by

the forces of the East Midlands Region as of

April 2012:

The table below shows the number of OCGs

from ACPO forces and agency partners that

are recorded as having an impact upon the

East Midlands region. Each impact is assessed

to determine the risk and threat it poses to the

region as these can be current, historical, limited

or signifi cant.

Externally Impacting OCGs

Force Total number of

OCGs

Total number of

Key Members

Derbyshire 62 409

Nottinghamshire 51 648

Lincolnshire 62 379

Leicestershire 53 362

Northamptonshire 95 526

East Midland Region 323 2,324

East Midlands Region OCGs

ACPO 352

SOCA 81

UKBA 23

NFIB 19

HMRC 5

North

West

18%

West

Midlands

9%

East

Midlands

8%

South

West

6%

North

East

3%

Wales

4%

Eastern

9%

South West

9%Yorkshire &

Humberside

10%

London

24%

Northamptonshire*

30%

Derbyshire

19%Lincolnshire

19%

Nottinghamshire

16%

Leicestershire

16%

8

3.1 Emerging Threats

Intelligence work currently undertaken (within the

Regional Intelligence Unit) includes:

❚ Future Threats

❚ Emerging criminal markets

❚ New areas of activity

❚ Changing criminals and victims

❚ More capable criminals

❚ A more fl exible and sophisticated threat

3.2 Drugs Supply

There are 168 recorded OCGs within the East

Midlands that are engaged in drugs activity,

although 70% of these are also involved in at least

one other form of criminality; particularly violence,

organised theft and specialist money laundering.

Many of these crime groups make signifi cant

profi ts by utilising bulking agents to increase the

amount of commodity for sale and maximise their

return.

Cannabis

Cannabis farms are prevalent throughout the East

Midlands forces and present signifi cant logistical

and operational challenges. The number of farms

identifi ed in the East Midlands region by 100,000

population 2010/2011 is as follows:*

Derbyshire 12 126 identifi ed farms

Nottinghamshire 18 200 identifi ed farms

Lincolnshire 3 20 identifi ed farms

Leicestershire 4 36 identifi ed farms

Northamptonshire 21 142 identifi ed farms

*Taken from the UK Commercial Cultivation of Cannabis National Problem

Profi le 2012

Current regional work is based around a three

month project to identify OCGs linked to Cannabis

farm recoveries in the region.

Cocaine

Regionally there are 63 known OCGs involved in

cocaine powder distribution.

Heroin

There are 69 known regional OCGs identifi ed as

being involved in heroin drug activity.

3.3 Firearms

In the East Midlands region there are 34 OCGs

involved in the criminal use of fi rearms. 17 are

considered medium harm, ie. fi rearms use has

been threatened, and 9 display a high harm score

which signifi es that the OCG or its members

have discharged fi rearms. The East Midlands

has experienced a rise in violence between

street gangs, evident within an increased use in

fi rearms to threaten or enforce with Leicestershire,

Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire most affected.

Firearms are being increasingly used to settle

disputes between rival Nottinghamshire OCGs.

There is evidence to show the movement and use

of weapons between West Midlands and East

Midlands forces, perhaps refl ecting established

gang affi liations.

Gang related shootings and murders

The NABIS (National Ballistics Intelligence Service)

quarterly report highlights six active inferred

(discharged within the last 6 months) and 49

inactive inferred weapons (not discharged within

the last 12 months) outstanding in the region.

The six weapons discharged in the last six months

are identifi ed as:

❚ Two Original Lethal Purpose

❚ Two Converted Blank Firers

❚ Two unknown weapon types

All six were identifi ed from the Nottinghamshire

force area. Nottinghamshire has recently identifi ed

9

a series of linked fi rearm discharges one of which

resulted in the murder of Malaki McKENZIE in

April 2012. A number of individuals have been

arrested in connection with this murder and have

links to regionally identifi ed OCGs and gang

related activity.

3.4 Violence against the person

There are 104 OCGs within the East Midlands that

are involved in various forms of violence against

the person, however the majority operate at a low

level of such criminality and consequently have

a minimal harm impact. In contrast there are 5

OCGs which exercise high levels of violence and

these are predominantly based in Nottinghamshire

and Lincolnshire.

3.5 Cash and Valuables in Transit (CVIT)

In the last twelve months, there have been 14

CVITs offences within the East Midlands and of

these 50% have occurred within Leicestershire,

with a further 29% and 21% in Nottinghamshire

and Derbyshire respectively. The number of

offences began to increase post May 2011 and

the offenders were successful in stealing cash in 6

of the 14 offences.

3.6 Money laundering

Regionally, 57 East Midlands OCGs are shown as

routinely engaged in specialist money laundering,

and represent 20% of the regional OCG total.

There are 14 OCGs with assets of over £1 million

of which 2 have assets over £10 million. The East

Midlands region has 43 OCGs primarily engaged

in fraud and fi nancial crime; 32 concentrate on

non fi scal fraud and 11 on fi scal.

4 EMSOU serious

organised crime -

structure & processIncludes a number of units each with

their own responsibilities:

4.1 Regional Intelligence Unit (RIU)

The RIU consists of a number of Police Offi cers

& Police staff providing intelligence & analytical

support. The unit is divided into three areas of

work:

❚ Organised Crime Group Mapping - Providing

the identifi cation, assessment and

management of those Organised Crime

Groups which pose the greatest threat.

❚ Strategic Intelligence - Providing the

intelligence support to projects such as

fi rearms supply, sexual exploitation of children

and metal theft. Responsible for producing a

strategic assessment of the threat from

serious & organised crime and tactical

assessments to enable delivery of services.

❚ Tactical Intelligence - Providing real time

intelligence to EMSOU operational teams.

4.2 Operation Liberal

Liberal is a long established and valuable national

intelligence unit based and line managed within

EMSOU targeting distraction burglary offences

committed in local force areas across England

and Wales. It is funded nationally through force

contributions at a cost of approx £600k.

(All forces contribute with the exception of the City

of London)

Operation Liberal collates intelligence in relation

to travelling criminals who commit crime against

10

the elderly, in particular those who undertake

distraction burglary and rogue trading. It provides

support to forces in relation to investigations

and prosecutions, resulting in substantial prison

sentences for those who are engaged in serial

criminality. As a consequence of its work,

distraction burglary has reduced nationally by over

50% in the last 10 years.

4.3 Government Agency Intelligence

Network (GAIN)

The East Midlands GAIN partnership provides

a formalised structure for partners who have

both an intelligence and enforcement capability

to progress and support joint investigations and

share knowledge of risk. There is a GAIN group

in each of the fi ve forces, a regional group, and

strategic governance is provided by the regional

Deputy Chief Constable at the GAIN Executive

Board. The recent review of Regional Organised

Crime Units (ROCUs) along with the Government

Organised Crime Strategy ‘Local to Global’ both

recommend that each region should follow the

East Midlands innovative lead and have a GAIN

network.

4.4 Covert Operations Syndicate

The Nationally Accredited Unit has specialist

offi cers who provide undercover covert provision

both within and outside of the Region and further

specialist support to ‘crimes in action’ such as

kidnap and extortion.

4.5 Regional Confi dential Unit (RCU)

The RCU handles the most sensitive sources

of intelligence available to Law Enforcement

Agencies and complements a network of similar

units around the UK. This is particularly effective in

disrupting threat to life scenarios and progressing

investigations against the most organised criminal

networks.

4.6 Operational Syndicates

The operational teams provide investigative and

surveillance support and are responsible for the

evidence gathering and subsequent prosecution

of Serious & Organised Crime investigations that

are adopted through tasking.

4.7 Regional Asset Recovery Team (RART)

The RART is Home Offi ce funded and part of

a national structure which provides specialist

fi nancial investigators in support of the fi ve East

Midland Forces conducting high level money

laundering investigations in order to remove

criminally derived assets. Financial investigative

support is also provided to partner agencies.

4.8 Regional Review Unit (RRU)

The RRU conduct reviews which include

murder, stranger rape, proactive serious and

organised crime investigations, non-stop fatal

road traffi c collisions, high risk and long term

missing persons, and critical incidents. It assists

investigators and ensures good practice is

promulgated.

4.9 Police Central e-crime Unit (PCeU)

The Police Central e-Crime Unit and its regional

hubs (one is based in the East Midlands within

EMSOU), constitute the ACPO lead unit for

combating cyber crime and strives to tackle those

responsible for the most serious cyber-crime

offences. This includes offences against the

Computer Misuse Act 1990 which may involve:

❚ Distributed denial of service attacks (DDOS)

❚ Unauthorised access to systems and

networks and causing malicious damage

11

❚ Phishing and using malicious software to

facilitate on line banking fraud

4.10 Technical Surveillance Unit (TSU)

The TSU provides covert and overt technical

support for EMSOU and the East Midlands

forces. Additionally the regional unit provides

highly specialised support around threats to life

scenarios and ‘crimes in action’

5 EMSOU serious

organised crime

-outcomesIt is diffi cult to accurately assess impact and

success in relation to this area of work given the

often diverse nature of the criminality involved.

Whilst there is data showing arrests, seizures

and convictions it is much more problematic

to measure ‘harm reduction’ and effective

‘disruption’.

In the East Midlands, in addition to data

collection, a subjective review is undertaken at the

conclusion of each operation which assesses the

level of disruption to the OCG and the reduction in

harm to the community.

Outcomes April 2011 - February 2012

317 Arrests

32 kg Class A drugs seized

977 kg Class B drugs seized

Over £400K cash seized

Over £165K confi scation orders granted

£3.3 million worth of assets under restraint

(as of February 2012)

9 fi rearms and ammunition recovered

Examples of recent operations

Operation Telesse

This operation tackled a Derbyshire &

Nottinghamshire based OCG with connections to

drugs supply and fi rearms believed to be supplied

by South Yorkshire criminals.

Prior to enforcement this operation lasted 10

months and an additional 14 months was spent

on fi le preparation and the judicial process. At any

one time there was a range of between 10 and

120 staff involved in the operation. EMSOU staff

worked alongside Local Authority staff as part of

the investigation. The CPS Complex Case Unit

prosecuted the case.

This resulted in successful convictions for Class A

and fi rearms offences plus:

❚ 16 arrests

❚ Total of 74 years imprisonment

❚ 5 kg cannabis, 2 kg heroin and 6000

ecstasy tablets seized

❚ Sawn off shotgun and handgun recovered

❚ £12k cash seizure

❚ £480K payment to the Inland Revenue

for tax evasion

Following enforcement activity, the threat score

in relation to that OCG has been signifi cantly

reduced.

Operation Canta

A Leicestershire and Northamptonshire based

Organised Crime Group linked to Class A and

B drugs supply in the East Midlands, Northern

Ireland, Lancashire, West Midlands and Greater

Manchester. The operation was 12 month’s in

development and then took a further 12 months

post enforcement. The investigation team

ranged from 10 staff to up to 200+ at the time of

12

enforcement. This was a multi-agency operation

along with SOCA and the Police Service of

Northern Ireland (PSNI).

The case was prosecuted the CPS complex case

unit. Following enforcement activity the threat

score has been signifi cantly reduced.

The outcome of this investigation was:

24 arrests ( including 9 in Northern Ireland)

275 kg Cannabis seized

3 kg Cocaine seized

3 kg of cutting agent

50,000 Ecstasy tablets seized.

£93k cash seized

Operation Ridion

This OCG was involved in the distribution of

Class A and B controlled drugs. Their network

was identifi ed as covering Lincolnshire and

Nottinghamshire. This operation lasted approx 2

and a half years from start to fi nish and involved

a team ranging from 10 up to 100 staff at varying

times.

The outcome of this investigation was:

❚ 23 arrests

❚ 22 kg of fl ouroamphetamine

❚ 119 grams of cocaine

❚ 2 fi rearms and ammunition recovered

All defendants pleaded guilty and received a total

of 25 years imprisonment.

Operation Guinness

Referred by Lincolnshire, and concerning

an OCG involved in Class A drug traffi cking

impacting upon Derbyshire, Northamptonshire,

Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and

Cambridgeshire. The investigation uncovered

a network spanning the UK and reaching into

Belgium and South America. The group had

planned to fl y Cocaine into the UK via Antwerp

using a private aircraft. The seizure of 88 kilos

of cocaine at Antwerp docks prevented this and

Belgium law enforcement assisted this enquiry.

Following enforcement a Belgium national was

arrested by EMSOU Offi cers and extradited back

to Belgium where he has subsequently been

sentenced to 5 yrs imprisonment for his part in the

seizure at the docks.

From commencement to sentence at court the

operation took approx 20 months. Up to 40 staff

were involved in the investigation which involved

multi-agency working with HMRC and SOCA. The

case was prosecuted by the CPS complex case

unit.

The result of this operation is as follows:

11 Arrests

11 kg amphetamine recovered

2 kg heroin recovered

104g cocaine recovered

£66K cash seized

£2.856 million assets seized

7 Firearms recovered

The members of this OCG were found guilty after

trial and received a total of 80 years imprisonment

Operation Orlando

Referred by the Environment Agency in

Nottinghamshire, this operation targeted a

waste recycling company that was operating a

number of sites illegally in Nottinghamshire and

Lincolnshire. As such they were able to undercut

13

other legitimate local business and evade landfi ll

and other associated costs. To aggravate matters

hazardous waste was also being disposed of

improperly creating public health and safety

concerns. Incidents involving serious injury to the

workforce were also investigated by the HSE. A

joint investigation led by the Environment Agency

and coordinated by the East Midlands GAIN

involved both Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire

Police with assistance form the RART. The

operation had a core investigation team of 10

staff increasing to over 60 upon enforcement. The

operation is still ongoing now awaiting trial some

18 months on from its commencement.

❚ 5 persons arrested

❚ £91k cash seizure

❚ 40 plus Environment Offences disclosed

Money Laundering – in excess of £2 million assets

identifi ed

5.1 Regional review unit

The Regional Review Unit has conducted 65

reviews (murder, stranger rape, major crime, fatal

collisions and missing persons) in all 5 forces

and made over 275 recommendations, including

recommendations with a National impact.

Additionally the Unit has identifi ed 150 areas of

good practice which have been disseminated

throughout the region at force development

seminars.

The Unit has quickly become established and

achieved a National reputation for excellence and

has subsequently been commissioned by Chief

Constables in the North West and South West

regions to conduct regional reviews and make

recommendations as to their regional structure.

The Unit has also been involved in the recent

major National review of 10 Regional Organised

Crime Units (of which EMSOU is one) identifying

operational gaps and making recommendations to

the Home Offi ce minister.

One of the most high profi le reviews conducted by

the Unit was of the deployment of the undercover

offi cer at the Ratcliffe on Soar power station and

the arrests of over 100 environmental protesters.

This review resulted in Local, Regional and

National recommendations being made but more

importantly highlighted Nottinghamshire’s decision

making process and subsequent investigation

which helped protect the reputation of the

Nottinghamshire Police service.

6 Regional major crime

- risk and treatMurder remains the most serious and high profi le

crime for forces to deal with. Those investigations

are usually the most resource intensive sometimes

with in excess of 100 staff involved at the

commencement including detectives, house

to house teams, search teams, forensic staff,

community offi cers and administrative support.

An early assessment is made of all murder

investigations to ensure they are adequately

resourced. The following long established national

guidelines determine the nature of the offending

and provide a guide to the initial deployment of

resources

Category A+

- a homicide or other major investigation where

public concern and the associated response to

media intervention is such that normal staffi ng

levels are not adequate to keep pace with the

investigation

14

Category A

- a homicide or other major investigation which

is of grave public concern or where vulnerable

members of the public are at risk, where the

identity of the offender(s) is not apparent, or

the investigation and the securing of evidence

requires signifi cant resource allocation

Category B

- a homicide or other major investigation, where

the identity of the offender(s) is not apparent,

the continued risk to the public is low or the

investigation and the securing of evidence can

be achieved within normal force resourcing

arrangements

Category C

- a homicide or other major investigation, where

the identity of the offender(s) is apparent from

the outset and the investigation or securing of

evidence can be achieved easily

The murder investigation team headed by

a trained and nationally accredited Senior

Investigating Offi cer (normally a Detective

Superintendent or Detective Chief Inspector) is

supported by a Major Investigation Room and a

case management system known as HOLMES

(Home Offi ce Large Major Enquiry System).

HOLMES is the long established system of

managing complex investigations and results

from the Byford review that followed the ‘Ripper’

convictions of Peter Sutcliffe. As well as the

outside enquiry team, made up of Detective

Constables and Detective Sergeants, there are

other roles that need to be resourced as detailed

below:

❚ Deputy Senior Investigating Offi cer

❚ An ‘offi cer manager’ who is responsible for

checking all documents and material secured

during the investigation

❚ An ‘action manager’ whose role is to

conduct an initial read of all documentation

and assessment of all material secured during

the investigation and to identify urgent lines of

enquiry for the outside enquiry team

❚ A ‘document reader’ whose role is similar

to that of the ‘action manager’. This person

will identify all other lines of enquires and

actions that need to be undertaken by the

outside enquiry team

❚ An exhibits offi cer responsible for the

reception, storage and integrity of all exhibits

❚ A disclosure offi cer who has a legal

responsibility under the Criminal Procedures

and Investigation Act to disclose all relevant

information to the Crown Prosecution Service

– including that which may potentially

undermine the prosecution case or support

the defendants case

❚ The inputting and indexing of information

on the HOLMES system is administered and

managed by a number of support staff roles

❚ A house to house supervisor. Where the

identity of the offender(s) is not apparent or the

enquiry is seeking to identify witnesses a

‘house to house’ enquiry is commenced. This

detailed examination of all households

identifi ed within the investigative strategy is

resource intensive particularly if accompanied

by a mass screen DNA operation or other

elimination process

❚ Scene preservation offi cers. Whilst the

crime scene(s) is examined by ‘crime scene

investigators/forensic scientists’ a secure

cordon is maintained around it by police

15

offi cers. This is to ensure the integrity of that

scene and any evidence contained within it

❚ Family Liaison Offi cers. These are trained

offi cers, usually deployed in pairs, to the

families of victims. They are the link between

the family and the investigation. It is a role that

is maintained until the conclusion of a criminal

trial and any subsequent appeal process

❚ Community liaison. This role is performed by

local offi cers and is overseen by a senior

offi cer. However, the Senior Investigating

Offi cer will from time to time, meet with

community groups as part of the response to

any local tensions or concerns

The number of new cases dealt with by the

unit since implementation has allowed an initial

analysis of the type of homicide experienced

across the region as well as emerging trends and

risks. There are two themes emerging behind

many of the offences investigated by the unit.

alcohol abuse/irresponsible drinking

the involvement whether as a victim, witness

or suspect of those who are not UK citizens

The latter presents two main challenges,

fi rstly relationships with Law Enforcement and

Governmental bodies outside of the UK and

predominantly across Eastern Europe and

secondly, the cultural differences within those

affected communities

Other murder/manslaughter types that continue to

feature are;

❚ Domestic - this is sub-divided into ‘current/

former spouse; sexual rival; parent/child

❚ Homicide in the course of other crime - this

is sub-divided into robbery; burglary; other

gain

❚ Gang homicide - usually between local rival

groups

❚ Confrontation homicide - this occurs

between unrelated individuals eg. drunken

brawls

Research into recent levels of murder/

manslaughter showed that between April

2004 and April 2010 there were three hundred

recorded incidents in the East Midlands.

There are other categories of crime that are

equally resource intensive due to either the

vulnerability of the victim(s), complexity of the

investigation or public scrutiny such as ‘attempted

murder’, stranger rapes (offender is not known to

the victim) and the riots of 2011.

September 2011 to April 2012

During this period there was a 32% increase in

recorded homicide, which presented a massive

and early test of the newly formed regional Major

Crime Unit.

This is spread across the East Midlands as shown:

❚ Derbyshire 13

❚ Leicestershire 10

❚ Lincolnshire 8

❚ Northamptonshire 9

❚ Nottinghamshire 20

16

Recorded homicide from

September 2011 to April 2012

Date Location Offence Outcome

September

2011

Derbyshire Murder of Lee Hendry, who was killed in

the home of an ex partner

A man is charged with murder

September

2011

Derbyshire Unlawful killing of Richard Peat, who was killed

in the home of an associate

A man is charged with unlawful act

manslaughter

October

2011

Derbyshire Death of James Caunt who died in a public place This case will be heard at Derby Coroners

Court.

October

2011

Derbyshire Murder of Richard Ziemacki, who was killed in a

public place

16 October

October

2011

Derbyshire Murder of Alexander Blick, who was killed in a

public place

A man is charged with murder

November

2011

Derbyshire 1976 enquiry into missing person presumed dead This case is ongoing

November

2011

Derbyshire Unlawful killing of Selwyn Shelborne, who was killed

in his home

This case is ongoing

December

2011

Derbyshire Murder of Sharon Knapper, who was killed in her

home

A man is charged with murder

February

2012

Derbyshire Manslaughter of Kenneth Stott, who was killed in a

public place

A youth is charged with manslaughter

March

2012

Derbyshire Manslaughter of Riley Pettipeirre, a two year old

child, took a lethal dose of methadone whilst at home

A woman and man are charged with

negligence manslaughter

April

2012

Derbyshire Murder of Ashley Finley, who was killed in a

public place

A man is charged with murder

April

2012

Derbyshire Extortion of Jeweller, who received an unwarranted

demand with menaces

This case is ongoing

April

2012

Derbyshire Extortion of Solicitor, who received an unwarranted

demands with menaces

This case is ongoing

In addition support is provided to Professional

Standards Departments for specifi c complex

corruption investigations, and also to support

the force with dynamic ‘crimes in action’ such

as extortion, kidnap and other force major crime

investigations.

There have been seven new and two legacy cases

where other EMSOU assets such as SOC have

provided support to EMSOU Major Crime. (A

legacy case refers to an undetected investigation

that commenced before the implementation

of EMSOU Major Crime) As well as providing

specialist covert investigative support they have

proved instrumental in the arrest of suspects

who had sought to evade capture as well as the

recovery of kidnap hostages.

6.1 Kidnap/abduction

Kidnap is often used as a means of enforcement,

a way of dealing with disputes between OCGs

and a way of asserting status and power over the

17

victim/hostage. The nature of organised crime,

and the involvement in some form of criminality

by victims and hostages, means that offences are

likely to be under-reported. “Vendetta kidnaps”

generally link to criminal disputes such as drug

dealing. 22 of the 323 East Midlands OCGs are

engaged in such criminality, which is equal to 8%,

just above the national fi gure.

6.2 Extortion

In the East Midlands, those OCG’s engaged in

extortion account for 5% of the total. Similarly to

kidnap and abduction, extortion is intrinsically

linked to other criminal activity and is used as

a means of control to facilitate the commission

of serious and organised crime. In this way

the associated threat is not as high and the

intelligence coverage is poor. There are 15 OCGs

regionally linked to extortion, but only 3 have

extortion recorded as their primary harm.

7 Regional major crime

- structure & processThe regional Major Crime Unit provides a

collaborative multi-force unit to investigate

offences of Murder, Manslaughter and Kidnap

with demands and Extortion across the fi ve

forces of the East Midlands. This is a centrally

commanded and locally delivered unit currently

with a footprint in each of the fi ve forces.

The unit is the professional lead for major crime

ensuring standards are maintained, challenged

and where appropriate enhanced.

The Major Crime team provide a 24/7 365 days

per year response and subject to capacity also

assists forces with other investigations which

include stranger rape, arson with intent to

endanger life, criminal professional standards

department enquiries, linked sexual offences and

cold case reviews in conjunction with the RRU.

EMSOU Major Crime is built upon an assessment

of risk and threat pertaining to its primary function,

which is to respond to incidents of homicide,

kidnaps with demand and extortion.

It is known that levels of demand for responding

to major crime vary greatly over time and cannot

be accurately predicted. Through a regionally

commanded and locally delivered Major Crime

Unit this variance should level out ensuring local

force investigative resources are protected and

can remain focussed on local issues.

There will be signifi cant periods where the unit is

working to capacity in its primary area. There will,

though, be peaks and troughs in demand and, in

these periods, there will be some limited capacity

to provide support to forces in relation to ‘other’

serious crime.

8 Regional major crime

- outcomesIn total since its inception in September 2011,

EMSOU Major Crime has dealt with 44 new cases

as well as managing a number of existing legacy

solved and undetected cases. The new cases are

broken down as follows

Homicide 34

Missing person/no body enquires 3

Crime in action operations 4

Unexplained death enquires 3

18

9 Regional counter

terrorism - risk and

threatHistorical risk & threat

Historically the East Midlands region has had

a wide range of threats to deal with across the

whole spectrum of Domestic Extremism and

terrorist activity.

In partnership with the Security Services, the

Unit manages and mitigates the risks posed

by a signifi cant number of subjects of interest

based across the region. Many have featured in

national and local operations dealing with travel

overseas for training/fi ghting and terrorist related

facilitation and fundraising. The Unit endeavours

to reduce the threat caused by the radicalisation

of vulnerable sections of our communities

by playing an active part within the Channel

scheme.* A recent example of this happened in

north Nottinghamshire where the trustees of a

Mosque were made aware of radical sermons and

teachings taking place. They immediately agreed

to withdraw the use of the Mosque to the group

involved and corrective teachings took place.

Domestic Extremism

- Regional DE activity started with the early

development of Animal Rights direct action

in Northamptonshire in the late 1980’s to the

more recent conviction in November 2005 of an

extreme right wing group from Lincolnshire who

received a total of 15 years imprisonment for

the possession, publication and distribution of

material likely to cause racial hatred.

Some signifi cant East Midlands based cases

include;

International Terrorism

- Most notable is the involvement of a Derby

resident in the May 2003 suicide bombing

outside a bar in Tel Aviv in which his accomplice

killed 3 people. Due to a device failure the

Derby resident’s bomb failed to detonate. This

is acknowledged as the fi rst case of a UK born

suicide bomber engaged in an act of terrorism.

2008

- Following threats to the then Prime Minister, a

warrant was executed in Derby where a quantity

of potassium nitrate, petrol and bomb making

instructions were recovered. The sole occupant

was found guilty of possessing articles intended

for use in terrorism.

* Channel uses existing collaboration between local authorities, the

police, statutory partners (such as education, social services, children’s

and youth services and offender management services) and the local

community to;

· Identify individuals at risk of being drawn in to violent extremism

· Assess the nature and extent of that risk

· Develop the most appropriate support for the individuals concerned

2010

- An investigation into a Lone Actor operative

named Krena LUSHA (an Albanian national),

resident in Derby. Derbyshire Special Branch,

at that time, worked in conjunction with the

North West CTU regarding an enquiry into a

communication between an extremist individual

abroad and a contact later identifi ed to be LUSHA.

When his home address was visited he was

found to have large amounts of petrol, extremist

literature and body armour in his possession.

There followed a lengthy joint enquiry into

LUSHA’s activities, associations, interests and

history to ascertain his actions and how he

19

came to have the mindset. This culminated in a

successful Terrorism Act prosecution and a term

of imprisonment. Upon his release deportation

proceedings will commence.

The East Midlands has been involved in a number

of other incidents including soliciting murder

during the Danish cartoon protest in London

in 2006, promotion of Al Muhajiroun (and all

associated proscribed organisations such as Al

Ghurabaa, Islam4UK, Call to Submission, Muslims

Against Crusades, etc) and the use of meeting

places in Wellingborough by associates of the 7/7

bombers who were found guilty of conspiracy to

cause explosions.

9.1 Current threat levels

The current threat level to the UK from

International Terrorism is SUBSTANTIAL; an attack

is a strong possibility.

Overall the Irish Republic Threat to the UK

Mainland is SUBSTANTIAL. Dissident Republican

Groups still aspire to attack targets within the UK.

The threat to Police Service of Northern Ireland

Offi cers and UK Police Offi cers in Northern Ireland

remains at SEVERE.

9.2 Regional threat and risk

❚ Travel to areas of Jihad for extremist training

continues to be a regional concern, reporting

indicates that Midlands-based individuals still

maintain an active desire to travel for training,

should the opportunity present itself.

❚ Facilitation networks are known to operate in

the Midlands which select potential trainees in

the UK, provide logistical support, and arrange

contact with extremists overseas who are able

to secure training. Fundraising also remains an

ongoing issue.

❚ Regionally there continues to be strong

support for Al-Shabaab the Somali

based terrorist organisation, including

reported fundraising and radicalisation activity

by Al-Shabaab supporters. Concern continues

regarding individuals who choose to travel from

the Midlands to Somalia to fi ght Jihad and the

potential long-term impact when they meet AQ-

connected individuals while overseas.

❚ Operationally the Somali extremist networks

show a wide range of inter-connectivity

across the country and through a large

proportion of Europe. The extremist networks

are believed to exploit these connections while

fundraising for different appeals such as the

Somali humanitarian crisis.

❚ Threats from Domestic Extremism remains

an issue with criminal acts and incidents

linked to Animal Rights (AR) extremists,

Extreme Right and Extreme left wing groups.

Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC)

continuing to be the most prominent of such

groups. The English Defence League also has a

signifi cant footprint within the region.

10 Regional counter

terrorism intelligence

unit - structure and

process

The EMSOU Counter Terrorism Unit is responsible

for delivering counter terrorism and domestic

extremism (DE) policing on behalf of the fi ve

East Midlands forces. The unit is funded from

a number of different funding streams. The

overall budget is approximately £12 million and

20

is made up as follows, 38% contribution from

the 5 regional forces, 29% direct Home Offi ce

CT Grant, this effectively funds the element that

also forms part of the National CT/DE network

(formerly known as the EMCTIU. The remaining

33% is made up of other CT Home Offi ce grants,

the majority of which fund Prevent activity and

security policing at Ports throughout the region.

The consequence is that this collaboration attracts

£12 m worth of policing effort for a local force

contribution of approx £4.5m.

The unit regionally delivers the National CT and

Domestic Extremism Policing Strategy which

supports the Governments CONTEST strategy.

Contest introduces the four strands of Pursue,

Protect, Prevent and Prepare. Additionally, the

fi ve force Special Branches act as the operational

delivery aspect of the unit are now integrated

into this nationally and locally tasked, regionally

commanded and locally delivered unit.

11 Regional counter

terrorism intelligence

unit - outcomesEMSOU - CT is part of the National CT network

and therefore subject to national tasking meaning

the unit will properly support investigations outside

the region. Conversely and when necessary,

the East Midlands region will also benefi t from

national support from other regions. Between 1

April 2011 and 29 February 2012 the dedicated

CT Surveillance Team deployed on average over

6 times a week. During the same period, there

have been 36 occasions where the East Midlands

surveillance team has been deployed outside of

the region with, conversely, 70 deployments of

surveillance teams from other areas into the East

Midlands region.

In addition to surveillance resources, assistance

from the CT network has been secured on

a number of other occasions, this includes

the provision of Senior Investigating offi cers,

investigative teams, Hi-tech and Disclosure

Offi cer. Overall the East Midlands is a signifi cant

net importer of resources from the national

network.

12 Regional

forensic unitEMSOU-Forensic Service provides an end to

end forensic service and professional lead in

support of major and volume crime investigation,

currently across Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, and

Nottinghamshire Police forces. The unit delivers

specialist services covering fi ngerprints, laboratory

capabilities, case management and Crime Scene

Investigation (CSI).

Delivery is through local CSI deployment in

each of the three forces supported by unifi ed

collaborative Identifi cation and Forensic Analytical

Services teams, based in Nottinghamshire and

Derbyshire HQ sites respectively.

A forensic response is required in almost all major

and serious crime and over 90% of dwelling

burglaries. Historical data demonstrates that when

forensic identifi cations are available over 40% of

those crimes will result in detection.

EMSOU-FS will deliver combined savings of

approximately £1.4m per annum across the

3 forces whilst delivering a resilient, effective

and quality assured service. The unit was fully

21

functional by the middle of May 2012 and will

focus on value for money whilst demonstrating

effectiveness through continuous improvement

and contribution to detections.

13 Our people

Unit No of Police

Offi cer

No of Police

Staff

Total Staff

Serious

Organised

Crime

225 151 376

Major Crime 163 68 231

Counter

Terrorism159 79 238

Forensics 150 (90 CSI) 150

Total Staff 547 448 995

14 Business benifi tsAll 5 forces rely upon the capabilities provided

by EMSOU. It is a simple philosophy of one

cohesive unit providing the resilience rather than

this being replicated in each of the 5 forces. By

reviewing EMSOU running costs and considering

the approximated costs required to replicate

the current level of service provided by EMSOU

across the fi ve individual forces, it is estimated

that a minimum of £44.8m of effi ciency savings

have been achieved since 2004, as set out in the

table on the following page:

22

Year Area of

Collaborative Policing

Brief Details Est. Annual

Saving to the

Region £’000

Regional

Cumulative

Saving to 2012

£’000

2004 Covert Unit Regional Covert Unit established across

all fi ve forces

2,252 16,214

2006 Intelligence Unit Enhanced Regional Intelligence Unit established

at EMSOU to fully support the strategic and

tactical requirements of the region

510 2,754

2007 Confi dential Unit Regional Confi dential Unit established at EMSOU 1,653 7,852

2008 Covert Equipment Covert surveillance Equipment (ATLAS) deployed

across the region by EMSOU.

Forensic Co-ordinator appointed

1,467 6,968

2009 Technical collection Expansion of embedded offi cers working in

London

425 1,211

2010 Regional Review Unit 5 Force Collaborative Unit established 74 148

2011 Technical Surveillance

Unit

5 Force Collaborative Unit established 133 133

2011 Counter Terrorism Merger of 5 Force Special Branch Units into CT 593 593

2012 Major Crime 5 Force Collaborative Unit established 3,451 3,451

2012 Serious & Organised

Crime

5 Force Collaborative Unit established 4,027 4,027

2012 Intelligence 5 Force Collaborative Unit established 349 349

2012 Forensic 3 Force Collaborative Unit established 1,086 1,086

TOTAL 16,020 44,786

The extent of the level of savings for each

force will be dependent upon their previous

staffi ng establishment and their historic level of

investment. However all forces benefi t from these

arrangements not just fi nancially, but in terms of

capability and resilience.

The following table summarises the force

savings per annum through Specialist Crime

Collaboration:

23

Collaboration Nottinghamshire

£

Derbyshire

£

Leicestershire

£

Northamptonshire

£

Lincolnshire

£

Total

£

Regional Review Unit 29,839 - 9,048 45,298 - 15,761 23,652 73,980

Technical Support

Unit

- 163,143 67,708 166,995 14,887 45,851 132,298

Counter Terrorism -

SB Merger

122,870 72,670 122,870 138,072 136,375 592,857

Major Crime - 5 Force

Footprint Model

2,917,297 491,744 - 50,491 173,428 - 81,284 3,450,694

Serious and

Organised Crime

868,724 363,148 1,297,945 984,724 512,673 4,027,214

Intelligence (OCGM/

Support to MC-SOC)

324,636 28,314 - 75,524 - 21,022 93,038 349,442

Forensics 91,208 781,210 213,747 1,086,165

Total 4,191,431 1,014,536 2,288,303 1,274,328 944,052 9,712,650

Projected Savings/(Costs) to Forces through Regional Collaboration

Notes

1. Projected savings against reported baseline costs, extracted from

either the 2009/10 or 2010/11 budgets (Forensic savings are against the

2011/12 budget).

2. Some budget savings may have been achieved in force in advance of

collaboration.

3. The extent of Police Offi cer savings will be subject to a number

of factors including attrition rates and the timing of any internal re-

organisation of structures.

4. Forensic saving excludes any savings made in force since 2010 when

the Business Case was fi rst developed.

EMSOU acknowledges the current austerity

measures being faced by each force within the

region and continues to explore all opportunities

to achieve further cost savings and effi ciencies.

Since 2010 cashable savings of £707k have been

achieved through procurement, internal

re-structuring and a reduction in external services.

All savings are passed onto the forces through a

reduction in the Unit’s running costs which leads

to a lower level of funding required from each

force.

Substantial savings have also been achieved

through the loan of equipment to forces. The

‘buy-once’ approach (on behalf of the region) has

enabled specialist technical equipment including

camera cars, camera equipment and thermal

imagery equipment, to be loaned out to all fi ve

forces on a regular basis.

The brigading of resources at EMSOU enables

fl exibility of deployment for managers thereby

preventing the negative impact on front line

service delivery and allowing offi cers to remain in

their regular roles rather than be abstracted.

Since 2009 EMSOU has been treated as a

separate entity in relation to the Home Offi ce

Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme which

enables forces and agencies to receive a

proportion of seized criminal assets following

successful forfeiture or confi scation activity.

During this period over £200k has been returned

to forces in line with the fi ve force formula share.

EMSOU has been identifi ed nationally (by various

Policing Ministers, the Cabinet Offi ce, the Home

24

Offi ce and HM Inspectorate of Constabulary) as

the example of best practice and a suggested

collaborative model for other regions to follow.

Quite simply, it is regarded as the most cohesive

and effective model of its kind in England and

Wales.

The Unit provides the fi ve East Midlands Forces

increased operational and fi nancial effi ciencies

through the continued presence of one consistent

and cohesive collaborative approach rather

than each force providing their own response in

isolation. This is particularly evident in 2011/2012

when there was a signifi cant increase in

collaboration within Serious Organised Crime,

Major Crime, Intelligence, Forensics, and Counter

Terrorism.

EMSOU Forensic has enabled a signifi cantly

reduced headcount through the delivery of a

new operating model with a more focused and

targeted crime scene examination policy. The

collaborative elements of a Forensic Analytical

Services Team (FAST) and Identifi cation are

capitalising on improved processes and

effi ciencies to enable the delivery of a quality

effective service; this includes the signifi cant

reduction in bureaucracy achieved through

paperless systems and mobile data collection and

delivery.

15 SUMMARYEMSOU is a multi-force and multi-agency

collaborative and operational unit dealing with

strategic and sustained risk through the best

possible model in the most cost effective way.

It supports the fi ve local East Midlands forces in

tackling serious organised crime, major crime and

terrorism with intelligence functions and forensic

capabilities commensurate to the threat faced.

Peter Goodman

Deputy Chief Constable

East Midland