Criminal Assets Bureau marks 30 years since its creation

Thursday 15 October marks the 30th anniversary of the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB), the state agency established to investigate assets suspected of being derived from criminal activity.

The bureau was set up in the wake of journalist Veronica Guerin’s murder on her way home from a court appearance in the summer of 1996. Guerin was killed by members of John Gilligan’s gang after she questioned his wealth while he was on the dole.

Journalist Paul Williams told The Pat Kenny Show that Guerin’s death was a “seminal event” that generated the political will to create a “draconian” law‑enforcement body. Although CAB was formally established on 15 October 1996, it had been operating for about six weeks beforehand.

Judicial endorsement

Justice Catherine McGuinness heard the case against Gilligan in March 1997 and delivered her judgment on the CAB on 26 June 1997, the first anniversary of Guerin’s murder. She noted that the Gardaí testified the bureau was needed to tackle a new type of professional criminal who organised crime and evaded ordinary investigation.

Williams said the CAB remains a powerful and important entity thirty years on, continuing to freeze and seize criminal proceeds.

Source: Newstalk. Photo: Phil Evenden / Pexels.