Pubdate: Thu, 07 Jun 2012 Source: Langley Times (CN BC) Copyright: 2012 Langley Times Contact: http://www.langleytimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1230 Author: Matthew Claxton Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/af.htm (Asset Forfeiture) COPS TARGET THE BLING OF CRIME The Langley RCMP are working to seize the cars, trucks, cash, and land of criminals To do any job properly, you need the right tools. Even if that job is crime. The Langley RCMP now has an officer dedicated to taking away the tools of criminals, hobbling their ability to continue operating. Const. Mike Schnerch is a 12-year veteran of the RCMP who has spent his entire career at the Langley detachment. After nine years with the Drug Section, he's now been appointed the Offence Related Property Coordinator. That means his job is to handle seizing goods used in, or paid for by, crime of all kinds. "Anything that's been used in the commission of an offense," he said. That can mean cash collected by drug dealers, cars and trucks used by break and enter artists and wire thieves, and houses and land used to grow marijuana. Since he took up the job in January, the Langley RCMP has restrained more than $3 million worth of property, in 25 separate investigations, and is pursuing full forfeiture through the courts. Of that, about $2.9 million is land. A total of $176,000 worth of goods has been fully forfeited and is now the property of the government of B.C. The first step in seizing property used by criminals is to get a restraint order. In a process similar to getting a warrant, police have to convince a judge that they have sufficient evidence to seize property they believe was used in a crime. The property will be held until criminal charges are dealt with by the courts, a process that can take months or years. However, if the charges are not proved or are dropped, the government can also to try and seize property through civil forfeiture legislation. The burden of proof is lower in civil court, Schnerch explains. The bulk of Schnerch's work - about 80 to 85 per cent, he estimates - is drug related, and he still reports to the sergeant of the Drug Section. But he's working with officers throughout the Langley RCMP. Among his tasks are educating other officers about the rules for seizing property, and helping them work through the process. Before Schnerch took up his new role, officers could file to seize property, but each had to do it alongside all the other work of an investigation. "It was the individual investigator [who] would be looking at that," Schnerch said. Taking away the properties used to grow pot, or the cars used to move drugs, is going to be a setback to full-time crooks, Schnerch said. "I think that's the thing that's going to hurt the criminals the most," he said. Schnerch can also work on more complex files, to track down and try to seize proceeds of crime. This requires proving that a home was bought with drug money, or a car was purchased with the cash a pimp earned from his illegal trade. Everything successfully seized will eventually be liquidated, so the cars and land will show up in a future government auction. The money doesn't flow directly back to the police, but local forces can apply for money for new equipment, training, or community projects. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom