Ireland Assures Bulgaria Bill on Illegal Assets Right Novinite.com - 2002/9/18
The operation of the Criminal Assets Bureau in Ireland were presented to Bulgaria's Interior Ministry Petkanov by Detective Chief Superintendent Felix McKenna, Chief Bureau Officer of Ireland's Criminal Assets Bureau, and Barry Galvin, Chief Legal Advisor to the Bureau. The meeting took place within consultations of the Interior Ministry on a bill on confiscation of property accumulated through criminal activity. The Irish Bureau was set up in an effort to step up fight against organized crime. Its main task is to trace assets, which are suspected to have been accumulated through criminal activity. It watches the activity and finances of persons engaged in terrorism, prostitution and smuggling. After the meeting Minister Petkanov commented the conversation has convinced him "we are on the right track". Confiscation of property acquired in the past 12 years in cases when the owner can not verify the origin of the acquired assets. This is envisaged by a bill, presented by Interior Minnster Petkanov at a roundtable discussion on September 10.