Guyana records major asset recovery successes, sets sights on confiscating criminal proceeds – AG

Attorney General Anil Nandlall says Guyana has made significant progress in recovering assets linked to organised crime and is now moving towards a more aggressive approach to confiscating proceeds believed to have been obtained through illegal activities.

Nandlall said recent collaboration among key state agencies has resulted in “tremendous successes” in tracing and recovering assets connected to criminal networks.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday on the sidelines of an event, Nandlall highlighted the joint efforts of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), the Attorney General’s Chambers, the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), the Guyana Police Force, the Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU), and the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA).

He pointed to recent court-approved measures, including the freezing of bank accounts and the detention of gold and other precious metals, as examples of the state’s increased efforts to target suspected criminal assets.

“You would have read in the newspaper how many accounts we have frozen recently, how many large quantity of gold and other precious metals we have detained through court orders using the legislation,” he said.

Nandlall said the government’s next focus will be on forfeiture, with authorities seeking to ensure that individuals involved in criminal activity do not continue to benefit financially from their actions.

“The emphasis now going forward is on forfeiture. It is to seize proceeds of crime,” he said.

Nandlall explained that authorities will also pursue outstanding fines imposed following criminal convictions and use the law to seize properties where evidence suggests they were acquired through unlawful means.

“We are now going to pursue the fines and we are going to seize using the law, seize properties that evidence suggests are the proceeds of crime or acquired through criminal means or criminal proceeds,” he said.

According to the Attorney General, the move forms part of a wider shift in Guyana’s approach to combating organised crime — targeting not only those responsible for illegal activities but also the financial benefits generated from them.