October 5, 2016
The Montreal police will renew two programs that give the department a financial incentive to crack down on contraband tobacco and alcohol and follow the money-laundering trail of criminal organizations in the city. Over $6 million in cash alone was seized or forfeited under ACCEF in Montreal in 2015-2016, down from over $10 million the previous year, the report says. The bounty peaked at $12.3 million in 2012-2013.
A Quebec government decree permits the Montreal police to keep half of confiscated assets, the report says. “The renewal of the ACCEF program is paramount in the fight against organized crime,” it says. “The purpose of the program is to detect and suppress in a concerted manner all economic and financial crimes committed by criminal organizations.”