Overview
Global Investigations Review quoted Zoe Osborne in a February 21 article titled, "SFO carried out no property raids last year."
The article covers a recent report that uncovered the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) conducted zero property raids from October 2020 to September 2021, in part caused by pandemic-related lockdowns and a move to remote work by SFO staff.
Osborne told GIR that the latest numbers are unsurprising in light of the pandemic-related safety restrictions, stating, "Before Covid, it was understood that the SFO had a large backlog of data to process, and I'm sure that backlog has grown." She added that raids may be less important for the SFO than other law enforcement agencies because of its focus on companies, since businesses tend to store most data electronically, which cannot be destroyed as easily as other incriminating materials, such as drugs.
The full article can be read at Global Investigations Review (subscription required).
