Australian police have announced the formation of a new police unit that will check and regulate all crypto-based activities across the country. According to the statement to that effect, the new body will be involved in checking, tracing, and seizing all digital assets that are proceeds from crime. This new body will operate as another arm of the recently unveiled Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce. In a statement by the executive overseeing the body, he felt that a new team was needed for this purpose.
Australian police want an independent body to tackle crypto illegalities
The Australian police have fingered digital assets as one of the ways that criminals across the country have been able to evade the law. With this new update, the newly formed team will aim to reduce the rate at which digital assets are involved in the perpetration of criminal acts drastically. The CACT also noted that it was felt that only a group of officers that would tackle these issues were needed as opposed to training all the officers in the country to that effect.
According to the executive in question, Stefan Jerga, the new former body will not only investigate the usage of these assets but will also help follow their usage, among other things. The executive noted that having a team that can trace digital asset transactions is paramount as it will help them overcome crimes in different aspects.
CACT envisions seizures worth $600 million by 2024
This latest update is from an announcement that the Australian police have seized $400 million in criminal proceeds. The statement also noted that more than $23 million has also been confiscated by the body through various means such as digital assets, cars, and sophisticated art works since 2020. In the statement, the CACT had envisioned that it would have been able to seize a total of $600 million in the next two years, a feat which looks possible judging by the amount it had seized.
Digital assets have been something that has been looked at with a wide lens by authorities in Australia. Since last year, the country has been mulling plans to set up its framework, which will guide the usage of digital assets. The framework will provide more information for officials as they can monitor the movements and trends in the crypto market. Policymakers across the world are still unrelenting on their quest to have it banned across the world. However, a few still feel a regulation might help reduce crime in the sector.
