Australia - WA Police will receive a multi-million dollar funding boost to tackle eastern states bikie gangs looking to move into WA.
Attorney-General Christian Porter today announced that the WA Police and the Department of Public Prosecutions will receive more than $13 million dollars over the next three years to fight organised crime.
The funding will come from the confiscations account that holds the proceeds from criminal property confiscations, to which police and the DPP have traditionally only had restricted access in the past.
Prior to this decision, the WA police only had access to 2.8 per cent of the confiscations account, equating to around $100,000 a year.
The police will now receive $3.43 million over the next three years as a base rate of funding. The police will also receive an additional 30 per cent of every dollar if the confiscations account exceeds $9 million.
The DPP has gained a similar deal with an extra $1 million in funding per year or a total funding package of $9.9 million over the next three years. The DPP will also received 30 per cent extra funding of amounts over $9 million in the confiscations account.
Mr Porter said that the only string attached to the money was that the additional funding had to be used to investigate organised crime and unexplained wealth, with outlaw motorcycle gangs being the primary target.
"In the case of the police, the new funding has to be used for the investigation of organised crime with a particular and immediate focus on outlaw motorcycle gangs," he said.
"This money is also to be used with a focus in generating investigations into unexplained wealth actions of outlaw motorcycle gangs and organised crime.
"This decision has been prompted in no small part by the events that occurred outside Wooroloo."
A member of an outlaw motorcycle gang was shot and wounded on a rural section of Great Eastern Highway in Wooroloo on October 12.
Police did not release the gang affiliations of the man, who took a shotgun blast to the shoulder, but there was speculation the man was linked to the Finks bikie gang, which is based in the eastern states.
"I know the police have some concerns of the increased level of activity from outlaw motorcycle gangs and particularly those from the eastern states in this jurisdiction," Mr Porter said.
"We hope this money will place significant pressure on those organisations in a financial sense.
"We are getting back to the original intentions of the confiscations act which is cracking the financial back of organised crime in WA."
Police Minster Rob Johnson said the funding was the beginning of a significant change in the way organised crime is handled in WA.
"I see enormous benefits in making these extra funds available. They will be used specifically to target organised crime, bikie gangs and unexplained wealth," Mr Johnson said.
"With these funds they can engage forensic accountants and special investigators to follow the money trail and make sure it is taken away from those who committed crimes and cannot explain their wealth."
Police commissioner Karl O'Callaghan said the funding had been long-coming, but it was welcome.
"The funding will mean we will able to put specialist resources into organised crime investigation in WA and I am confident that it will make a significant difference," he said.
"When you investigate organised crime, it is very complex. We need a number of special resources to do that.
"Organised crime is difficult to resolve and this will help us resolve it. I'm sure we will see more people charged and more proceeds of crime material seized."
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