A pair of springer spaniels – Ben and Rip – have been trained to sniff out caches of money.
Two new weapons in the fight against serious and Staffordshire Police has unveiled the new members of the team against organised crime.
What they say
Insp Steve Doncaster of the tactical support team says: "We are the second force in the region to train cash detection dogs to search for paper money, both sterling and Euros. These notes have a strong, distinctive smell for these dogs, allowing them to find money that has been very well concealed. The Bank of England have supported us by providing a quantity of replica banknotes – they are smaller than the real thing but smell the same as regular money."
The spaniels will support the work of the economic crime unit, recovering cash and assets so criminals don’t profit from their crimes.
Cash seizures are a significant way of ensuring that money made illegally is invested into making communities safer, said Detective Sergeant Nick Jones. “Since the Proceeds of Crime Act 2003 was introduced, the force has made over £1m in cash seizures – money which can be used to enhance Staffordshire’s capability to fight crime and reassure the public. Cash seizures are running at two a month and these dogs will increase our ability to take money out of crime. Whether it’s benefit fraud or drug trafficking, we are making sure that crime doesn’t pay.”
