Isle of Man Suitcase Banking - What About A Historical Enquiries Team?

NEWS FROM THE CELTIC LEAGUE

All quiet at the Lubyanka (aka the Central Police Headquarters) despite the assertion by an MHK in response to the ‘TURNERGATE’ affair that many years ago people used to turn up to banking institutions on the Island with suitcases full of money.

At the time in the mid/late eighties when the Celtic League or Mec Vannin suggested such things went on at Island banks we were, to put it mildly, lampooned.

‘There’s no evidence’ said the powers that be ‘show us the evidence’.

At the time as well Police fraud resources were minimal I recall the Head of Fraud saying to me they didn’t even have there own photocopier and (if my memory serves me correctly – it was a long time ago) he had to share clerical support from another section.

In those days the Police Fraud Unit was tucked away in one of the cupboards that pass for offices at the ‘Lubyankas’ warren of office’s up by the Grandstand.

My how things have changed the new ‘all singing all dancing’ Financial Crime Unit are so swish they have parted company from the rest of ‘the plod’ and are comfortably installed in opulent premises on Bucks Road. They even have a ‘hot-line’ to the AG (sorry Acting AG)!

Indeed their structures we were told early last year were to be ‘beefed-up’ even more. So goodness knows how many of them are pushing paper around in there now (link):

http://www.three.fm/…/financial-crime-unit-to-undergo-shak…/

It seems the ‘shake-up’ announced by Allan Bell (Chief Minister) was sadly not sufficient to stop that £7 million NAMA (Northern Portfolio) monies landing in a bank account on the Island. So what on earth do they all do?

Anyway I feel sure that there are more than enough staff at the FCU to set up a ‘Historical Enquiries Unit’. Who knows ‘the suitcase money’ banks may well still be in business and that MHK was quite specific.

So will we hear an announcement from Chief Constable, Gary Roberts, any day soon? Don’t hold your breath!

Photo: The ‘Lubyanka’ (aka CPHQ Douglas). The ‘plods’ erstwhile colleagues at the FCU have much more opulent premises on Finch Road but they are so discreet we couldn’t find a photograph online. Perhaps they should have an open day and we could see what they do and more interestingly how many of them there are!

BERNARD MOFFATT

Issued by: The Celtic News

27/01/16

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