Several days after the murder of journalist Victoria Guerin, the Irish Parliament passed the first laws determining the origin of the property without going into details on proving whether such property was acquired by a criminal offense or not.
ON 26 JUNE 1996, drug traffickers killed Irish journalist Victoria Guerin, who was an investigative journalist. She was killed after a series of articles and photographs of members of the Irish Mafia involved in drug trafficking. The criminals earned millions from their criminal trade and were, at the same time, registered for the social care program. They would regularly receive social care funds and take them in social care institutions by driving in in the most expensive cars, wearing fancy clothes and expensive watches. They would take social care money to their villas at the outskirts of Dublin. They laughed at and mocked the country, police and prosecutorial system and the citizens. They lived like lords, and enjoyed the fruits of crime, and covered themselves with poor social benefits.
After several newspaper articles, the police and prosecutor's office snapped out of the situation and started doing their job. They investigated their property, lifestyle, they tried proving that they are all multiple perpetrators of criminal acts, drug traffickers, killers... But, they had zero results. Crimes have not been proven. Gentlemen were acquitted in court, they returned to their villas, drove out their expensive cars, continued to live in abundance, and what do you know, re-gained the right to social care because they had no funds to live from. They do not work. Their life is threatened.
DRUG TRAFFICKERS DID NOT FORGIVE VICTORIA for creating them problems. She was the reason why they were in custody and their empire threatened. Two days after they were released from custody, they were acquitted of drug trafficking. Victoria Guerin was found dead in her car. The public was agitated. It was clear what was happening. It was clear that the existing repressive system cannot respond to the challenges of combating organised crime today. Several days after the murder of journalist Victoria Guerin, the Irish Parliament passed the first laws determining the origin of the property without going into details on proving whether such property was acquired by a criminal offense or not. It was obvious to everyone in Ireland that the “gentlemen“ were engaged in illegal activities such as drug trafficking and that the court cannot prove it. They will keep their property, apply again for social care and kill those who bother them, and they will also be able to invest again their dirty money to new mafia ventures. Ireland and its citizens did not want to allow for such injustice. They found a way to get to the criminal property without interfering into the fact whether the property was acquired by a criminal offense or not. It is important that there is sufficient probability that the property was acquired illegally. The state may file a claim – claim against the property, not against a person. It may ask from the court in a judicial civil proceedings to determine whether the property was acquired legally or not. The court will not determine guilt, only the origin of the property, i.e. whether it was acquired legally or not.
Organised crime and illegally acquired money were recognised as a challenge in terms of European security. An investigation of illegal property is one of five strategic objectives in the internal document of the European Union – Internal Security Strategy in Action. The European Commission recommended to make changes to the European legal framework for increased confiscation of illegal property as the most efficient methods of fight against organised crime.
SERBIA FOLLOWS EUROPEAN UNION IN THIS REGARD. In May, the Government adopted the Strategy for Investigation of Financial Crime, and the public hearing also included new Law on organisation and competence of state authorities for combating organised crime and corruption.