Positive results achieved by the Force's Financial Investigation Unit
Efforts by Dorset Police’s Financial Investigation Unit (FIU) have deprived criminals the proceeds of their crimes to achieve positive results for victims and the Force.
Over the past 12 months, officers of the FIU have been increasingly using The Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA), which enables law enforcement agencies to deprive criminals of their money, or other property connected to criminal activity, and recover the proceeds of crime.
Recovered criminal proceeds can subsequently be returned in compensation to victims following criminal conviction, or reinvested for use in tackling crime through the Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme (ARIS).
Dorset Police’s FIU handles all the civil POCA investigations and also works to secure confiscation orders, which if granted, can deprive an offender of future assets, such as a lottery win or inheritance, should they not have the assets available at the time of conviction.
In the 2024/2025 financial year, the unit achieved the following:
- 12 civil forfeitures totalling £79,243.41 – 50 per cent of which will go to Dorset Police
- 19 POCA confiscation orders totalling to £3,425,335.03, of which £759,010.32 was immediately available for confiscation from criminals - 18.75 per cent of this available amount will go to Dorset Police
- Two compensation orders to a value of £44,178 – all of this will be returned to victims
In one case last autumn, officers began investigating a UK registered company which was entirely operating from overseas but was using a Dorset registered office address to sell poor quality hearing aids into the UK through its websites.
In June 2025, with support from Dorset Council Trading Standards, the FIU recovered over £38,000 which the company had derived from unlawful conduct, out of which an affected customer has been reimbursed and 50 per cent of the remaining balance will go to the Force through ARIS.
In another case, the FIU was able to disrupt the activity of a known rogue trader in the region. He had used his dissolved company to charge a vulnerable victim £3,700 for drainage work, but the FIU obtained an account freezing order in early 2025 and were able to return the funds to the victim.
As well as this, the unit has been reviewing prosecution outcomes for cases related to drug supply, which often result in cash being forfeited at court, having been seized during the investigation. All of this money goes to the Force and is ringfenced for drug prevention strategies.
In the 2024/2025 financial year, FIU secured a total of 21 section 27 Misuse of Drug Act (MDA) forfeiture orders valuing £38,452.26.
Detective Inspector Ian Allen, of the FIU, said: “We have been proactively using POCA a lot more over the past 12 months and have already had a number of successes.
“It has resulted in positive outcomes for victims, who have been compensated for their losses, and has also allowed us to reinvest recovered assists to benefit the Force.
“We hope this demonstrates our dedication to tackling financial crime, using a wide array of tactics to disrupt criminals and recover their proceeds for those impacted.”
Cllr. Gill Taylor, Dorset Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Housing (including Trading Standards), said: “Criminals who exploit vulnerable people for profit have no place in our communities.
“I’m proud of the role Dorset Council’s Trading Standards team has played in supporting these investigations. By working closely with Dorset Police, we’re helping to ensure that victims are compensated and that illegal profits are taken out of circulation.
“This is a powerful example of partnership in action - protecting residents and reinforcing trust in local enforcement.”