Scotland’s Serious Organised Crime Strategy

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First published by the Scottish Government, June 2015
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Published by the Scottish Government, June 2015

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Contents

1. Foreword by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice

2. What is our vision and aim?

3. What have we achieved and what has changed since the first strategy in 2009?

4. What is Serious Organised Crime?

5. What are we doing to reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime?

6. How will we use this strategy to achieve real change?

7. How will we know if we are succeeding?

8. What can you do?

Annexes:

A. Related strategies, programmes and initiatives

B. Structures and governance

C. List of contributors

D. Contact details for reporting Serious Organised Crime

1. Foreword by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice

Serious Organised Crime affects us all and we all have a part to play in reducing the harm it causes.

My vision is of a Scotland free from Serious Organised Crime: a Scotland where our communities are free from the blight of drug-dealing and the fear of violence; where our businesses can compete fairly and prosper without having to compete with those who launder money, evade taxes or cut corners; and where the vulnerable are protected from those who would seek to exploit, traffic or cheat them.

This strategy is about all of Scotland working together to deliver that vision and reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime. It is about detecting and disrupting Serious Organised Crime, but most of all it is about preventing it at source: cutting off the markets, the recruits and the opportunities on which Serious Organised Crime relies. We will work with the public and communities to cut off the market for its products, its drugs and counterfeit goods; we will work with schools, prisons, communities and the third sector to cut off the recruits to Serious Organised Crime; and we will work with businesses, regulators, local authorities and other public sector organisations to cut off the opportunities to set up or facilitate quasi-legitimate businesses, get licences, win contracts or launder money.

This strategy builds on "Letting Our Communities Flourish", the original Serious Organised Crime strategy for Scotland, which was published in 2009. It records the progress that has been made since then – the leaps forward in partnership working, information-sharing, financial investigation – and calls for an even broader, stronger partnership, a partnership that includes law enforcement agencies, local authorities and other public sector bodies, small businesses and large corporations, regulators, third sector organisations, individuals and communities. We have already begun to work with that broader partnership in the development of this strategy with contributions from organisations as diverse as KPMG, Trading Standards Scotland, Sacro, the Scottish Football Association and the Church of Scotland.

Together we can reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime and make Scotland a safer, fairer and more prosperous country.

MICHAEL MATHESON MSP
Cabinet Secretary for Justice
June 2015

2. What is our vision and aim?

Vision:
A safer, fairer and more prosperous country free from the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime.

Aim:
To reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime.

Objectives:
We will deliver this aim by focusing on four objectives:

DIVERT – To divert people from becoming involved in Serious Organised Crime and using
its products

DETER – To deter Serious Organised Crime Groups by supporting private, public and third
sector organisations to protect themselves and each other

DETECT – To identify, detect and prosecute those involved in Serious Organised Crime

DISRUPT – To disrupt Serious Organised Crime Groups

Contribution to National Outcomes

Reducing the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime will contribute to many of the national outcomes in the Scottish Government's National Performance Framework[1] including:

1. We live in a Scotland that is the most attractive place for doing business in Europe.

8. We have improved the life chances for children, young people and families at risk.

9. We live our lives safe from crime, disorder and danger.

11. We have strong, resilient and supportive communities where people take responsibility for their own actions and how they affect others.

3. What have we achieved and what has changed since the first strategy in 2009?

The timeline on the next page shows some of the major structural changes and legislative improvements that have happened since "Letting Our Communities Flourish" was published in 2009, including the creation of Police Scotland in 2013, the opening of the Scottish Crime Campus in 2014 and the range of legislative provisions relating to Serious Organised Crime which will come into effect later this year.

There have been many other developments, changes and achievements since 2009. Perhaps the most important of these are the improvements in multi-agency working. These range from joint operations by Police Scotland, the National Crime Agency, HMRC and others against specific Crime Groups through to closer co-operation between local authorities, regulators and police divisions to prevent Serious Organised Crime Groups accessing licences or competing for public contracts.

The Scottish Crime Campus at Gartcosh is both the most powerful symbol of these developments and an opportunity for further improvement. Funded by the Scottish Government and opened in 2014, the Crime Campus houses staff from all of the main law enforcement agencies operating in Scotland, as well as state-of-the-art forensics laboratories and staff from an increasing number of regulators including SEPA and the Security Industry Authority. Co-location of these organisations has already generated significant benefits around information-sharing, communication and joint resourcing. We will look to derive even greater benefits in the years ahead.

There have also been improvements in the gathering and sharing of intelligence and in work to analyse and map the threat posed by Serious Organised Crime Groups in Scotland, all with the goal of supporting more sophisticated detection and disruption of these groups.

The case studies later in this document provide examples of specific operations, initiatives and achievements.

None of this could have been delivered without the hard work and dedication of many different organisations and individuals. The challenge now is to involve more organisations and more individuals in further steps to reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime.

Changes in threats and crime types since 2009

- At the same time as the response to Serious Organised Crime has changed significantly since 2009, so too has the nature of the threats. In particular, there have been substantial increases in:

- cybercrime: cyber-enabled crime – traditional crimes increased in scale or reach by the use of ICT (e.g. fraud) and cyber-dependent crime – offences that can be committed using only ICT (e.g. malicious software, hacking).

- human trafficking.

- There have been decreases in other areas (e.g. armed robbery; SOC-related homicides).

- There have also been changes in the legitimate business sectors that Serious Organised Crime Groups have tried to infiltrate (e.g. the waste industry).

- Work is under way to clarify the extent to which Serious Organised Crime Groups are currently involved in:

- child sexual exploitation.

- the distribution and sale of New Psychoactive Substances.

What has changed since the first strategy in 2009?

4. What is Serious Organised Crime?

For the purposes of this strategy, Serious Organised Crime is crime which:

- involves more than one person;

- is organised, meaning that it involves control, planning and use of specialist resources;

- causes, or has the potential to cause, significant harm; and

- involves benefit to the individuals concerned, particularly financial gain.

What does serious organised crime look like in Scotland?[2]

- A total of 232 Serious Organised Crime Groups (SOCGs) are recorded as operating in Scotland, made up of about 3,700 individuals.

- 70% of SOCGs are located in the West of Scotland, 18% in the East and 12% in the North.

- There is evidence to suggest that Serious Organised Crime has a disproportionate impact on Scotland's poorer communities, contributing to social and economic inequalities.

- 65% of SOCGs are involved in drug crime; heroin is the most popular commodity, followed by cocaine, cannabis, amphetamine and tranquilisers.

- Other crime types include violence; money laundering; various forms of fraud including cigarette smuggling and tax fraud; human trafficking; metal theft; bogus workmen and cybercrime.

- Human trafficking occurs throughout Scotland and is not confined to its major cities. Human trafficking has been identified in Argyll, Glasgow, Kirkcaldy, Edinburgh, Skye and Aberdeen.[3]

- Police investigations relating to bogus workmen and doorstep crime have found that the average age of victims is 81. Most victims are women who live alone. After a crime of this type, victims suffer more rapid declines in health than non-victim peers.[4]

- 65% of SOCGs are involved in the use of seemingly legitimate businesses. The most common business types are licensed premises, taxis, restaurants, shops, garage repairs and vehicle maintenance, and property development. Over 650 such businesses have been identified.

How does Serious Organised Crime harm people in Scotland?

Serious Organised Crime comes in any number of guises but is all about generating wealth at the expense of other people. It is about exploiting honest, law-abiding people, including the most vulnerable members of our communities. The examples used throughout this document show the devastating impact such crime can have on our citizens, communities, businesses and public services.

Kidnap and extortion:

A large scale drug deal involving Serious Organised Crime Groups (SOCGs) in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Liverpool turned sour. In an effort to recover their cash, the Liverpool SOCG enlisted the assistance of Glasgow-based criminals. A number of men went to an address in Edinburgh and bundled a 16-year-old relative of one of the Edinburgh criminals into a car, before driving him to England. He was handed over to the Liverpool SOCG, who threatened the victim's life unless a substantial ransom was paid. As a significant police operation commenced, the Edinburgh SOCG was believed to have armed themselves with firearms for protection. Following investigation, the victim was located safe and well and five people were arrested.

Metal theft:

In July 2013 a mile of cable was stolen from the Aberdeen to Inverness railway line. The theft caused the cancellation of trains between Inverurie and Huntly for two days. A British Transport Police spokesman said: "There is a common assumption that cable theft is a victimless crime, with the only effects being felt by the railway industry. This is not the case. Theft of cable can, and does, cause significant delays and cancellations to the rail industry – as well as costing the industry millions of pounds each year."

Bogus workmen:

A criminal enquiry carried out jointly by Trading Standards and police officers revealed that a Crime Group had targeted victims suffering from advanced dementia or other vulnerabilities. In one case a family member had contacted Trading Standards, worried that her elderly aunt had been overcharged. She had been told that the wood in her loft was rotten and the floor was damp. She had paid £8,500 up front, then £16,000 – with no receipt. A council building officer later estimated that the work had been worth just £1,400. He also told her there was no damp that would have affected the fabric of the building.

Cigarette smuggling:

HMRC disrupted smugglers illegally importing cigarettes from China through Grangemouth container port. It is estimated that the smugglers would have evaded around £160,000 in excise duty. This is money that would have gone into crooks' pockets rather than being spent on public services for the benefit of the whole community. In addition, the sale of smuggled cigarettes is unregulated, with cigarettes often sold to children and young people and not subject to quality controls. Cigarette smuggling also has an impact on local shopkeepers who suffer when sales are lost to the black market.

Payment fraud:

A criminal enquiry carried out jointly by NHSScotland Counter Fraud Services and Police Scotland discovered that a payment of £120,000, due to be paid to a building contractor for an ongoing building refurbishment contract with an NHS Board, had been diverted into a fraudster's account. NHS Accounts Payable Staff had been the subject of an organised and elaborate scam that resulted in fraudsters convincing staff to alter bank account information. This social engineering had involved the use of simulated telephone numbers and email account details with the fraudsters gradually gathering key information over a period of time. The scam was only discovered when the building contractor contacted the NHS Board to chase up the payment.

Cyber attack:

Early in 2015, a large Scottish business was the victim of a sustained Ransomware[5] attack. The Ransomware was spread through spam emails with malicious attachments and resulted in approximately 100,000 business critical files being encrypted. Once infected, the business was presented with a ransom notification and instructions on how to pay the ransom. In order to counter the attack, all infected machines were removed from the corporate network, forensically cleaned and malware removed. All files, drives and data were then restored. All of this had a huge financial impact with numerous members of staff unable to access files and unable to carry out normal day-to-day business.

New Psychoactive Substances:

A young woman went to a house party. She consumed a white powder which she was sure was M-CAT, a common New Psychoactive Substance. She displayed the usual signs of abnormal behaviour associated with stimulants but after a couple of hours became unwell and lost consciousness. Paramedics and police were called. She was found to be very hot to the touch and unresponsive. In the ambulance she had a cardiac arrest. The emergency services managed to restart her heart but she was not breathing for herself. On arrival at the A & E, it was noted that her body temperature was 42 degrees (normal being 36-37). Her muscles were rigid and she had a further cardiac arrest and died. The drug was subsequently identified as a modification of a dietary weight loss drug, which has since been reclassified as a class A drug.

Drug addiction:

Susan, a woman in her late 30's, had been in contact with a Drug Crisis Centre for a number of years and used the needle exchange services. She was a regular smoker of crack cocaine, and ingested diazepam, as well as injecting a large quantity of heroin on a daily basis. She funded her drug use through sex working, had been subjected to violence during her work, and had tested positive for Hepatitis C. She had criminal convictions, had spent time in prison, had been homeless and lost access to her children.

Human trafficking:

Maria, a 21-year old woman from the Czech Republic, had worked as a prostitute in Prague for two years. During this time she met a man who became her boyfriend and agreed to give him 50% of her income. The boyfriend convinced Maria to travel to Scotland with him. Maria was taken to a flat in which another woman was selling sex and men were already waiting to pay for sex with Maria. The doors and windows of the flat were locked; Maria was not allowed to go out of the flat unaccompanied. When she became worried that she was pregnant, Maria called her boyfriend for help and to ask if she could go home. He refused to help her and told her she had to repay the £1,000 that he claimed she owed him. A few days later, Maria found that the door to the flat was unlocked. She grabbed her phone and what little money she had, and ran out into the street. She called her family to ask for help. Her family called the local police station in the Czech Republic, who contacted Police Scotland. With the help of Police Scotland and the Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance, Maria was able to return safely to Prague and was reunited with her family.

5. What are we doing to reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime?

Reducing the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime requires the sustained efforts of organisations, communities and individuals working together. It requires communication, research, process-improvements, legislation and increased gathering and sharing of information and intelligence.

We have made progress in all of these areas since "Letting Our Communities Flourish" was published in 2009, but there is more to be done.

We will continue to deliver activity through the four strands: Divert, Deter, Detect and Disrupt. Each strand will make use of research, increase information-sharing and drive continuous improvement. Communication and awareness-raising will be essential within and across all four strands: sharing information with the public, businesses and public and third sector organisations is key to achieving our aim.

How the different strands of the strategy work together to reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime

DIVERT

Cyber Security Education in schools

Cyber offers significant career opportunities in a highly paid sector. It is an expanding business sector of growing value to the Scottish economy. There will be major social and economic benefits if Scotland can develop a generation of children who are cyber security aware and know how to remain safe in the virtual world.

In school terms 1 and 2 of 2014, the Computing Department of Kyle Academy in Ayr delivered a series of modules over a 12 week period to 1st year pupils on online safety awareness, cyber security and an introduction to computing science. Police Scotland and Scottish universities had assisted in the development of this programme in order to raise awareness amongst the pupils of the threat online but also the opportunities involved in cyber as a career.

Children were taught what to do if they were the victim of online crime and who they could turn to for support or advice. The course was designed to instil cyber awareness as a life skill.

Innovatively, the children were also encouraged through homework to raise these issues with their parents and grandparents, some of whom might not be technically aware and as a consequence, vulnerable online. There was very positive feedback from parents and grandparents over what the children were able to teach them.

This programme is now being rolled out through additional regions in Scotland with a view to it being adopted nationwide.

Diversion programme for young people

Action for Children Scotland has worked in partnership with Police Scotland, Glasgow City Council Social Work Services, the Scottish Prison Service and the Scottish Government to develop a service which diverts children and young people from involvement in Serious Organised Crime.

The service takes a two-pronged approach: employing specialist peer mentors who gain the trust of the young people and using service staff to work with their families – many of whom are pro-criminal and need to be convinced to allow their young people to try another way of life. The aims of this service are to reduce offending behaviour, improve young people's physical and mental wellbeing (including reduced or stabilised substance misuse), improve relationships with families, peers and the community, and encourage the young people to access financial advice, education, and/or employment.

Action for Children Scotland believes its peer mentors are vital to the success of the service, building strong relationships with the young people and learning about their trigger points, crime patterns, physical and emotional wellbeing, and family situations. The peer mentors are all in their early 20s and were involved in Serious Organised Crime themselves from a very young age; they talk to the young people in a language they understand. The young people who use the service have grown up admiring men who have designer clothes and flashy cars, and who make a living from crime. They need alternative role models. Action for Children Scotland's peer mentors have been there, done that, and are living proof that, given the right support, they can turn their lives around.

The service provides attractive alternatives, such as leisure activities, training opportunities and work placements, to young people who often feel like they have no future. One boy who uses the service said that, at the age of 15, his life was already mapped out. This service helped him realise that there are other options.

DETER

Money Laundering

Anti-money laundering rules and regulations have been in place for many years and the major financial institutions have robust structures in place for monitoring and reporting suspicious activity. Money laundering can also happen at the smallest financial services organisations where small, regular amounts of money can be laundered through multiple accounts in a way that is not always recognised by staff.

In consultation with the Association of British Credit Unions Limited (ABCUL) it became apparent in 2014 that there was no formal training in place for staff and volunteers across the circa 110 credit unions in Scotland. The Scottish Business Resilience Centre (SBRC) developed an anti-money laundering training package in collaboration with Police Scotland and ABCUL, for credit union staff to raise awareness of legislation, examples of risk exposure and processes to report suspicious transactions.

The training package has now been delivered by SBRC to approximately 70 managers, staff and volunteers from 32 credit unions.

'The ongoing support and advice we have received from SBRC has better enabled us to understand our risks, strengthen our defences and has greatly improved our resilience against current and future threats.' (Blantyre and South Lanarkshire Credit Union, November 2014)

The ambition of the SBRC is to reach a stage where every credit union and its staff in Scotland have received a minimum level of anti-money laundering training. In this way the risk of credit unions being used as a vehicle for criminal activity will be greatly reduced.

Local authority checklist

Scotland's local authorities are at the centre of community life. They provide many of society's most valued and essential day to day services and are major employers responsible for key areas including education, housing, licensing and planning. It is key that local authorities take steps to reduce risk and target harden themselves against criminality.

Falkirk Council devised an internal checklist that they could use to strengthen their processes and structures against Serious Organised Crime and the risk of corruption. The principles of this checklist have now been included in the Council's internal audit procedures, and the checklist has been shared across all local authorities in Scotland.

Taxi contract

When an application for a taxi booking office licence was submitted in East Ayrshire, an objection was received from Police Scotland on the basis that the activity would be managed by, or carried out for, the benefit of persons who would have been refused the licence themselves. Police Scotland provided information which connected the applicant to three named persons by way of business, finance and property arrangements from which it was alleged that there was clear evidence of a controlling influence in the existing taxi business being operated by the applicant and that the influence would extend to any booking office operated in future by the applicant.

Although the applicant did not have any convictions, the three named persons had numerous convictions. One of them had been convicted on several occasions of violence and drug offences and had been sentenced on two occasions to eight years in prison. All three were also facing charges at the time of the objection arising from their involvement in the operation of a private security company.

The Local Government Licensing Panel refused the application on the basis of the Police Scotland objection. The decision was not appealed.

DETECT

Black Fish

The activities of organised crime networks do not always involve drugs or violence, and police and prosecutors continue to work hard to identify them whatever form they take.

A large-scale investigation was launched after it was discovered that trawler skippers and onshore processing facilities in Lerwick and Peterhead were working together to falsely declare the quantity of fish that was being landed.

Their highly complex and devious methods of avoiding the legal quotas allowed them to overfish and increase their profits. This posed significant danger to the fish stocks, to the wider marine ecosystem and to hard-working fishermen trying to make an honest living in the industry.

Police and prosecutors worked closely with Marine Scotland to detect and prosecute the dozens of skippers and three onshore processing facilities involved in the fraud.

By the time the cases concluded in 2012, the crime network had been dismantled and the courts had handed out fines and confiscation orders totalling nearly £10 million.

Tyres

SEPA dealt with an enquiry in 2013 in the Wishaw area where an operator, who was permitted to have 1,000 tyres on his site, had accumulated an amount far in excess of that (initial estimates were 500,000 tyres).

There were a number of risks concerning the location of the site which was close to houses, a hospital and the main national rail infrastructure. There were other concerns relating to the site not least of which was the eventual clear-up cost – around £400,000.

The enquiry, which ran for some time, took on a multi-agency approach involving Fire and Rescue, the Health Board, Police Scotland, SEPA and the local authorities.

At a recent court case an individual pled guilty to a number of environmental offences and was sentenced to 14 months imprisonment. The company involved was also charged £195,000.

Drugs Seizure

In 2012, two men were stopped by police officers on the M6 in Staffordshire. An initial search of the vehicle found over £55,000 in cash.

During subsequent searches of one of the accused's properties in Edinburgh, officers recovered approximately £120,000 of cocaine, 20 kilos of heroin adulterant, £1,000 in cash and a number of fraudulent passports and identity documents.

The individual was later prosecuted in Scotland, and ultimately pled guilty to offences under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 with an aggravation by the connection to Serious Organised Crime, money laundering offences with an aggravation by the connection to Serious Organised Crime and charges under the Identity Documents Act 2010.

This was the first time that the Serious Organised Crime provisions under Section 29 of the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2010 had been used, which allow an offence to be marked as being connected to Serious Organised Crime. This then appears on the accused's record and can be taken into account by the judge in sentencing.

The accused was ultimately sentenced to eight years and nine months.

DISRUPT

Operation Trust: dismantling a Serious Organised Crime Group from the bottom up

Operation Trust was a large-scale operation that ran from 2010 to 2013, aimed at tackling a Serious Organised Crime Group that spanned west and central Scotland.

The investigation revealed the business model of the crime group, with individuals assuming responsibility for finances, procurement and distribution.

The Serious Organised Crime Group was dismantled from the bottom up, meaning that as their lower-level "staff" were arrested, the bosses had to become directly involved in the preparation and dealing of drugs, making them easier to apprehend and prosecute.

The identification and use of the business model was an innovation in disrupting and systematically dismantling a Serious Organised Crime Group.

From the first arrest to the conclusion of the court cases, the operation had a huge impact on Serious Organised Crime in west and central Scotland. It led to the seizure of many millions of pounds of controlled drugs, the conviction of fifteen people, prison sentences totalling over 50 years and over £600,000 confiscated for re-investment in Scottish communities.

Operation Frizz

HMRC's criminal investigation teams work closely with partner agencies to tackle Serious Organised Crime. This joint work ranges from stopping Organised Criminals bringing illicit alcohol and tobacco into our communities to making sure that tax-evading fraudsters are punished for their crimes.

In a landmark case, HMRC and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service worked together to bring to justice a trio who stole money from the UK taxpayer and then constructed a complex web in an attempt to cover their tracks and launder their ill-gotten gains.

The complex scheme, which included fraudulent VAT repayment claims and money laundering on an industrial scale, was masterminded from Scotland's central belt and uncovered by HMRC officers. The money laundering process incorporated companies and financial institutions in the UK, Greece, Cyprus, Switzerland, the United States and the British Virgin Islands. In addition to HMRC's work, the Crown Office's Economic Crime Unit also gathered evidence that led to the eventual convictions.

The investigation culminated in a court case in which the main fraudster's accountant and solicitor were found guilty of money laundering and jailed for a total of six and a half years. Although the main fraudster pled guilty, he absconded before sentencing and fled to Northern Cyprus in an attempt to evade the law.

HMRC officers caught up with him 15 months later, and he was extradited back to the UK. In June 2014, he was sentenced to a further 18 months for failing to appear for his original sentencing. This was added to a sentence of 10 years for his part in laundering £11.6 million.

After his release, he will also be under a Financial Reporting Order which will allow prosecutors to check his bank accounts for criminal activity for a further 15 years. He and his accountant have also had their remaining assets confiscated and will face further sanctions should they come into further funds in future, until they have repaid the total of their illegal earnings. The confiscation case against his solicitor is ongoing.

6. How will we use this strategy to achieve real change?

Implementation

We will turn the objectives in this strategy into practical activities, projects and improvements that will reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime.

For each of the strands of the strategy, Divert, Deter, Detect and Disrupt, we are developing detailed plans – based on the diagrams earlier in this document – setting out clear changes, projects and pilots that will help to deliver the objective of each strand and the overall aim of the strategy.

Successful implementation of those changes will involve input from thousands of individuals, hundreds of organisations and every part of Scottish society – communities, small businesses, large corporations, local authorities, NHS Boards, third sector organisations, law enforcement agencies, prisons, regulators and central government. It will also require responses to Serious Organised Crime which are tailored to the specific needs of local areas and local communities.

For some suggestions on how you can contribute, see "What can you do?"

Communication and awareness-raising

Communication and awareness-raising are essential to delivering the safer, fairer, more prosperous Scotland free from the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime which we all want to see.

Only by knowing more about how Serious Organised Crime operates will the public, businesses and public and third sector organisations be able to protect themselves and alert law enforcement agencies to Serious Organised Crime around them. By making people aware of the close links between counterfeit and smuggled goods and the misery of human trafficking and drug dealing, we can help ensure the public do not fund such activities.

The media has an important role to play in highlighting the dangers of Serious Organised Crime. We will work with them to do this. We will also use social media and will work closely with education authorities and institutions, training providers and membership bodies to communicate with particular groups, sectors and organisations. We will build trust so that individuals and communities are confident about engaging with law enforcement agencies and other public bodies and reporting concerns.

Research on Serious Organised Crime

We will continue to research Serious Organised Crime in Scotland to ensure we have a detailed, evidence-based understanding of Serious Organised Crime and that we develop effective, evidenced-based programmes to counter it. This will include research on the prevalence of Serious Organised Crime in Scotland and its impact on communities.

We will share our findings with other agencies across the UK, Europe and beyond. We will also study the impact of approaches adopted elsewhere to see if there are lessons that can be applied in Scotland.

7. How will we know if we are succeeding?

We will measure and report on progress in achieving the aim and objectives of the strategy. We will do this using a combination of evaluation and self-assessment, narrative (including case studies) and statistical indicators. We propose to answer the following questions:

Are we diverting people from becoming involved in Serious Organised Crime and using its products?

To do this, we will use surveys to understand public attitudes to the products of Serious Organised Crime (counterfeit goods and drugs) and changes in those attitudes over time. We will draw on data on recreational and problem drug use in Scotland. We will evaluate the effectiveness of diversionary interventions in schools, communities and prisons.

Are we deterring Serious Organised Crime Groups by supporting private, public and third sector organisations to protect themselves and each other?

We will use surveys to measure awareness of Serious Organised Crime in different sectors. We will measure and report on activity by organisations and businesses to protect themselves from Serious Organised Crime. We will share examples of evidenced good practice in preventing Serious Organised Crime Groups from accessing licences or contracts.

Are we identifying, detecting and prosecuting those involved in Serious Organised Crime?

We will measure and report on the arrest, conviction and imprisonment of Serious Organised Criminals. We will measure and report on the number of people charged and convicted under Sections 28 to 31 of the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2010. We will measure and report on the number of detections for drugs supply, production and cultivation in line with the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. We will look to evaluate and report on the effectiveness of multi-agency collaboration.

Are we disrupting Serious Organised Crime Groups?

We will continue to measure the value of assets recovered using Proceeds of Crime legislation, the value of assets identified by law enforcement agencies for restraint, the value of cash seizures and the value of drugs and counterfeit goods seized. We will share examples of evidenced good practice including where regulators have succeeded in disrupting Serious Organised Crime Groups. Once introduced, we will measure and report on the use of Serious Crime Prevention Orders.

Are we reducing the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime?

We will use the data and reports referred to above. We will conduct research on the prevalence and nature of Serious Organised Crime in Scotland and levels of victimisation and will then measure and report on changes in these things over time. We will conduct research on the impact on communities of Serious Organised Crime.

How will you know if we are succeeding?

We will publish annual reports on progress in delivering this strategy and achieving our aim of reducing the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime, starting in autumn 2016. We will publish additional research and data as they become available.

8. What can you do?

For some organisations, addressing Serious Organised Crime is a clear part of their remit. These include Police Scotland, HMRC, the National Crime Agency, the Scottish Prison Service and parts of the third sector and the Scottish Government, but there is a lot that we can all do:

Individuals – You can protect yourselves from cyber threats[6] (with anti-virus software on phones, tablets and PCs, strong passwords etc), report any concerns, help vulnerable relatives, friends or neighbours to be safe from scams or other forms of exploitation, avoid buying counterfeit goods or other products of Serious Organised Crime.

Communities – can support people at risk of becoming involved in Serious Organised Crime, work with law enforcement agencies, local authorities and regulators to discourage and deter the selling of the products of Serious Organised Crime, promote positive alternatives to Serious Organised Crime in terms of employment, businesses, products and values.

Businesses – You can protect yourselves from cyber threats[6], vet your staff, report any concerns, keep informed about current threats, put plans and processes in place to protect against fraud, corruption etc.

Businesses involved in banking and financial services – in addition, can train staff to recognise signs of money-laundering, report suspicious activity to law enforcement agencies, support your customers in protecting themselves.

Local authorities and other public bodies – You can protect yourselves from cyber threats[6], vet your staff, use the local authority Serious Organised Crime self-assessment checklist, put in place robust procurement processes, use your regulatory and licensing powers to disrupt and deter Serious Organised Crime Groups, share information and intelligence with law enforcement agencies, listen to your communities and strengthen community participation, work through schools to educate children and young people about drugs and counterfeit goods, work together to support young people on the cusp of Serious Organised Crime into education, employment or training.

Elected representatives (Councillors, MSPs and MPs) – You can protect yourselves from any risk of blackmail or pressure, work with your officials to put in place and apply robust procurement and licensing processes, make reducing the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime a priority, use your links with local communities to contribute to detecting, disrupting and deterring Serious Organised Crime.

Third sector organisations – You can contribute to diverting people from Serious Organised Crime and its products and promoting positive alternatives, protect yourselves from cyber threats[6] and fraud, contribute to stronger, more resilient communities.

Serious Organised Crime affects us all and we can all play a part in reducing the harm it causes.

If you see something, say something – using the contact details at the back of this document (Annex D).

Annex A. Related strategies, programmes and initiatives

Work to reduce the harm caused by Serious Organised Crime is dependent on, and, in turn, supports many other strategies and programmes. For example, Choices for Life (a drugs education programme in schools) contributes to delivering Divert's goals around discouraging people from using the products of Serious Organised Crime, while this strategy as a whole contributes to the delivery of the Justice Strategy for Scotland.

Annex B. Structures and governance

Annex C. List of contributors

Action for Children

Apex Scotland

Church of Scotland

Cosla

Crimestoppers Scotland

Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service

Dundee City Council

Falkirk Council

Glasgow City Council

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland

Hm Revenue and Customs

Improvement Service

Inverclyde Council

Kpmg

National Crime Agency

Nhs National Services Scotland

Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator

Police Scotland

Poverty Truth Commission

Renfrewshire Council

Royal Bank of Scotland

Sacro

Scottish Business Resilience Centre

Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Scottish Football Association

Scottish Government

Scottish Police Authority

Scottish Prison Service

Selex Es

Solace (Society of Local Authority Chief Executives and Senior Managers)

South Lanarkshire Council

Stirling Council

Tara (Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance)

Trading Standards Scotland

West Lothian Council

Young Enterprise Scotland

Annex D. Contact details for reporting Serious Organised Crime

In an emergency always call 999

If you see something, say something – telephone numbers for reporting concerns

Police Scotland – 101

Crimestoppers – 0800 555 111

HM Revenue and Customs Confidential Hotline – 0800 59 5000

HM Revenue and Customs Tax Evasion Hotline - 0800 78 8887

Modern Slavery Helpline – 0800 0121 700

Action Fraud – 0300 123 2040

Websites for further information

Police Scotland – www.scotland.police.uk

HM Revenue and Customs – www.hmrc.gov.uk

National Crime Agency – www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk

Building Safer Communities – www.buildingsafercommunities.co.uk

Scottish Business Resilience Centre – www.sbrcentre.co.uk

Modern Slavery – www.modernslavery.co.uk

Action Fraud – www.actionfraud.police.uk

Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service – www.crownoffice.gov.uk

Get Safe Online – www.getsafeonline.org

Choices 4 Life – young.scot/choices-for-life

Thinkuknow – www.thinkuknow.co.uk

Childnet International – www.childnet.org

Footnotes

1. Scotland's National Performance Framework was published by the Scottish Government in 2007. It sets out a vision and outcomes for Scotland's public services, and includes 16 national outcomes. More information on the National Performance Framework is available at
http://www.gov.scot/Resource/Doc/933/0124200.pdf

2. All figures in this section are taken from Police Scotland data from June 2015 unless otherwise stated.

3. Equality and Human Rights Commission Inquiry into Human Trafficking in Scotland, 2011. In 2014 the UK National Referral Mechanism received 111 referrals of potential victims of human trafficking first encountered in Scotland. The main reasons given for the trafficking were sexual exploitation, labour exploitation and domestic servitude.

4. Data released by Police Scotland in 2015.

5. A type of malicious software designed to block access to a computer system until a sum or money is paid.

6. Cyber threats include virus and spyware; phishing emails and other cyber-enabled fraud; hacking to steal data or intellectual property; spoof or malicious websites set up to mimic the website of a reputable company