Proceeds of Crime Criminal Lawyers
Proceeds of crime offences cover a number of different offences in the Crimes Act 1900 with maximum penalties ranging from 3 to 20 years imprisonment. Maximum penalties are, however, reserved for offenders with the worst criminal records who commit the worst examples of the offending. For people with no records who commit less serious offences, the court may dismiss the charges without recording a conviction and without any other penalty. This is known as a section 10 no convictions.
In a world where online banking lets large sums of money be transferred with the click of a button, prosecutions for proceeds of crime offences are cases that we deal with every day. Our expert criminal lawyers beat these charges, which can be difficult to prove if you have a criminal lawyer who knows how to fight the police on your behalf.
There are multiple offences that concern dealing with proceeds of crimes ranging from offences that are to be dealt with in the Local Court only, to offences that can only be dealt with in the District Court because of their seriousness. The more serious the offence, the harder it is for the police to prove. For example, for knowingly dealing with proceeds of a crime, it is difficult for the police to prove that you knew where the money (transferred into your bank account) came from.
If you intend to plead guilty to this offence, depending on the seriousness, we have charges dismissed without convictions, and without our clients being sentenced to prison.
What are Proceeds of Crime offences?
A person who deals with property, and there is reasonable grounds for that person to suspect that the property is proceeds of a crime, then that person is guilty of an offence.
The law is set out in sections 193B and 193C of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW). The offence of “dealing with property suspected of being proceeds of crime” or what is commonly referred to as “proceeds of crime” is as follows.
The act states;
(1) A person is guilty of an offence if:
(a) the person deals with property, and
(b) there are reasonable grounds to suspect that the property is proceeds of crime, and
(c) at the time of the dealing, the value of the property is $100,000 or more.
Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 5 years.
(2) A person is guilty of an offence if:
(a) the person deals with property, and
(b) there are reasonable grounds to suspect that the property is proceeds of crime, and
(c) at the time of the dealing, the value of the property is less than $100,000.
Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 3 years.
Pleading not guilty to Proceeds of Crime Charges
You will be found not guilty of the offence of a dealing with proceeds of crime offence if the police cannot prove beyond reasonable doubt
- You deal with property and there are reasonable grounds to suspect the property is proceeds of crime.
Or - You deal with the proceeds of a crime being reckless as to whether it is the proceeds of crime.
Or - You deal with the proceeds of a crime, knowing that it is the proceeds of crime.
Or - You deal with the proceeds of a crime, knowing that it is the proceeds of crime, and intending to conceal that it is the proceeds of a crime.
Deal with includes receive, possess, conceal or dispose of; or bring or cause to be brought into NSW, including the transfer or cause to be transferred by electronic communication, or engage directly or indirectly in a transaction, including receiving or making a gift.
“Proceeds of crime” means any property that is substantially derived or realised, directly or indirectly, by any person from the commission of a serious offence.
What is the best defence for Proceeds of Crime Charges?
Your best defence is to work with experienced lawyers like Australian Criminal Law Group. Our criminal law team frequently get charges of Proceeds of Crime dropped. The defence will depend on the individual circumstances of the offence that took place. However, some of the most common defences include;
- That you didn’t know that the property was proceeds of crime. That you had no reasonable grounds to suspect that the property was obtained via criminal activity.
- Duress where you may have been coerced or threatened into using or dealing with the proceeds of a crime.
What is “reasonable grounds” to suspect property is proceeds of crime?
The Act includes the following guidelines for what could constitute as “reasonable grounds” to suspect property is proceeds of crime.
- The dealing with the property involves a number of structured transactions that seek to avoid reporting requirement of the Financial Transaction Reports Act 1988; or
- The dealing involves a number of structured transactions that seek to avoid reporting requirement of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006;
- The dealing involves the use of bank accounts held in false names; or
- The dealing amounts to an offence under section 139-141 of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006; or
- The value of the property in question is grossly out of proportion to the income of the defendant and expenditure over the period of time; or
- The dealing involves a significant cash transaction under the Financial Transaction Reports Act 1988 and the defendant has not fulfilled reporting obligations or has given false or misleading information for reporting purposes; or
- The dealing involves a threshold transaction under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 and the defendant has not fulfilled reporting obligations or has given false or misleading information for reporting purposes; or
The defendant has stated that the dealing was dealt on behalf of another person, but has not provided information that allows authorities to locate
Pleading guilty to charges
If you agree that you have committed the offence (and the police are able to prove so), it is best to plead guilty as you will normally receive a discount on your sentence, and it will demonstrate remorse and contrition. Our experienced solicitors can negotiate with prosecutors for you to plead guilty to less serious facts or even a less serious charge.
Where there are reasonable grounds to suspect the property is proceeds of crime the maximum penalty is two years imprisonment and/or a fine of $5,500.00 in the Local Court. Where you are reckless to the property being proceeds of crime the maximum penalty in the District Court is 10 years imprisonment. Where you know the property is proceeds of crimes the maximum penalty is 15 years imprisonment and when you know intending to conceal that fact, the maximum penalty is 20 years imprisonment. However, these penalties are typically reserved for the worst offenders. If you are charged with Dealing with proceeds of crimes, you should contact our office immediately.
You can read about all the sentencing options that a court has, including about having no conviction recorded here.
Do I need references for court?
We believe references are an extremely important part of a plea of guilty in court. Find out more about how to write a good reference if you’ve been charged with the offence of Proceeds of Crime.
What are the penalties for “dealing with property suspected of being proceeds of crime”?
If you have been found guilty of Dealing with Property Suspected of being Proceeds of Crime, you could be facing a maximum penalty of 3 to 5 years imprisonment.
- If the value of the property is greater than $100,000 the maximum penalty is 5 years imprisonment.
- If the value of the property is less than $100,000 then the maximum penalty is 3 years imprisonment.
Why choose Australian Criminal Law Group to defend charges against you?
Our criminal lawyers are experts at obtaining the best outcome possible for dealing with the proceeds of a crime. For these offences, a good lawyer can be the difference between a conviction and no criminal record and freedom or jail. We offer first free consultations to help you find the right defence team for your case. Contact us today to book via phone on 02 8815 8167 or email at info@aclawgroup.com.au.
To discuss your charge, call the Australian Criminal Law Group at our Sydney, Parramatta, and Blacktown offices or make a website inquiry today.
Case Study
A Sydney man charged with four counts of dealing with criminal proceeds with a total value of almost half a million dollars ($440,000) walked away with an intensive corrections order (ICO) and community service. This was thanks to the sentencing submission made to the court by Australian Criminal Law Group’s Criminal Lawyer Joseph Correy. Read all about the case here.
Case Study
Australian Criminal Law Group represented a man charged with knowingly dealing with proceeds of a crime (which has a maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment), 11 counts of fraud, Participating in a criminal group, and deriving profit from a criminal group. Mr Correy had all the offences withdrawn and a new charge of the much less serious offence of dealing with money reasonably suspected of being proceeds of a crime. The deal that Mr Correy got his client was better than all the co-Accused received. At sentence, the magistrate did not record a conviction.
Case Study
Australian Criminal Law Group represented a man charged with four counts of recklessly dealing with the proceeds of a crime and one count of knowingly dealing with the proceeds of the crime (which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment) with a value of about $60,000. Mr Correy negotiated for all the offences to be withdrawn, and a new charge of the much less serious offence of dealing with money reasonably suspected of being proceeds of crime. The magistrate gave our client a good behaviour bond and the police were required some of the money seized back to our client.
Case Study
Australian Criminal Law Group represented a woman charged with dealing with money reasonably suspected of being from a crime. Our solicitor argued she had no reasonable grounds to suspect the money was proceeds of crime because men often transferred her money due to her occupation as an escort, and she was not guilty. In another case, the solicitor argued his client had no reasonable grounds to suspect the money was from of crime because he was told the money was for the repayment of outstanding debt to him. He was not guilty.
Sources:
- Crimes Act 1900 No 40, Current version for 1 January 2022 to date (accessed 19 February 2022 at 13:47), Part 4AC, Section 193A https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-1900-040#sec.61I
This information is intended as a general guide to law only. It should not be relied on as legal advice and it is recommended that you speak with a qualified lawyer about your situation.
Australian Criminal Law Group and its suppliers make every reasonable effort to ensure the accuracy and validity of the information provided on its web pages. At the time of updating, this information was correct, however, given the laws in NSW and Australia are continually changing, Australian Criminal Law Group makes no warranties or representations as to its accuracy.