Corruption generates billions of dollars each year. A large portion of the assets acquired through acts of corruption can never be recovered by victim countries for the simple reason: it was not possible to locate them. The profits generated by crime are often transferred to financial centres in an attempt to thwart or complicate efforts by law enforcement agencies to identify and trace assets acquired in the process. Therefore, the success of public corruption, money laundering and most financial crime investigations depends largely upon the criminal investigator’s ability to track the ownership trail of money and other assets.
In many countries, criminal investigations are primarily directed towards the investigation of the underlying criminality. It is still comparatively rare for investigators, as a routine part of the investigation of major proceeds-generating offences, to “follow the money”. To trace money and property successfully, the investigator must be equipped to uncover and identify ownership interests often camouflaged by changes in the form and nature of the ownership.
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