POLICE have fought to seize more than £1.5 million of goods and cash in nine months to stop criminals living a life of luxury.

Since April, detectives in the county have obtained 70 orders forcing the sale of cars, houses and other items.

Many of the goods have been sold by police to compensate victims.

Items are typically sold at public auctions, or through internet auction sites such as eBay.

The sales have also meant cash has been raised to fund crime-busting initiatives in the county, including the Operation Nemesis drug crackdown.

The seizures come under powers designed to hit criminals in the pocket and ensure crime doesn't pay.

Detective Sergeant Nicholas Jones, from Staffordshire Police's economic crime unit, said: "There are a lot of offenders who commit crime for a living, people who have not been deterred by prison.

"Research has shown that the only area of the criminal justice system they fear is asset recovery.

"This legislation gives us a key tool in the armoury of the police to hit these individuals where it hurts – in the pocket.

"It also sends out a message to deter young individuals who might otherwise want to follow these negative role models into a life of crime and gangs."

Police figures show officers have taken £249,000 in cash from criminals since April.

And £1.28 million more has been demanded from crooks in confiscation orders made to courts over the past nine months.

Items seized and auctioned include jewellery, bikes and watches.

Cars are also confiscated. These are believed to have included Crewe-made Bentleys costing upwards of £200,000. However, DS Jones said many vehicles seized are leased, and return to the finance company rather than be sold on.

Among those forced to sell assets is convicted murderer Alan Stead. The 43-year-old was last month ordered to pay back £245,000 obtained from insurance firms after he killed his wife Anita in a fire at their home in Slindon Close, Waterhayes, in 2002.

Last month, former solicitor Veronica Hyland had assets of £38,500 confiscated after being convicted of swindling £100,000 out of a dying millionaire. The judge ruled 50-year-old Hyland, of Priory Road, Stone, benefited from her crimes to the tune of £96,122.

This year's total is currently lower than £3.2 million forfeited by criminals in the previous financial year. But the number of orders sought has risen steadily since the legislation was first introduced in 2002.

DS Jones said: "A number of cases are pending where large confiscation orders are expected, and I would anticipate that our asset recovery figure this financial year will rise significantly over the next few months.

Steve Ash, senior prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service in Staffordshire, explained: "Last year was exceptional in that the total was boosted by a few orders made against high-value individuals. The overall trend is upwards. There has been a change in culture which means that we will look towards pursuing the gains of criminals."

DS Jones said the police had increased the number of officers involved in financial investigation, a move which is expected to both increase asset recovery rates and better tackle organised crime groups.

He added: "We don't chase targets and I would normally expect to match or exceed Home Office targets as a natural consequence of our work.

"I think financial investigation and the proceeds of crime legislation is the best piece of law enforcement legislation we have ever had.

"We are committed to ensuring that high levels of trust and confidence are maintained in the judicial system, and the idea of criminals retaining assets can never be acceptable.

"Most of the asset recovery we are currently taking on will find its way back to the victims of the crimes we are investigating."

Fraudster must pay £12m: Page 12