Successfully Retrieving Funds Frozen by the National Crime Agency (NCA)
In March 2023, Jacqui Callan and Megan Delaney were approached by a family who were served an account freezing order by the National Crime Agency (NCA). The NCA can apply to freeze the funds in any person’s bank account if they have reasonable grounds to believe the money was obtained through criminal conduct. When the family approached Richard Nelson LLP, the NCA had frozen their account, which contained over half a million pounds.
Our client sold a family factory and transferred the proceeds of the sale from Iran to the UK. To make the transfer, he used an Informal Value Transfer System. The family had used this system to transfer money to the UK for over 20 years. However, for this specific transaction, the NCA were arguing the transfer system had been hijacked by money launderers and the funds were in fact the proceeds of crime. The family sought the help of Jacqui Callan and Megan Delaney as they were not involved in the criminal conduct and had acted in good faith throughout.
Jacqui Callan took on conduct of this case whilst the NCA were still investigating. She represented the clients’ best interests in front of the NCA investigators and robustly challenged their understanding of the Iranian systems. Witness statements were taken, and experts were brought in to show the NCA that the clients were acting in good faith and should not be unfairly punished for the crimes of others.
Despite best efforts, the NCA applied to City of London Magistrates Court for full forfeiture of the funds – if the NCA were successful in their application, the funds would never be returned to the family. Jacqui and Megan prepared the case for a full contested hearing, knowing the outcome would have a great impact on the family’s future. They brought in a specialist barrister, James Fletcher (5 St Andrews Hill Chambers), whose attention to detail and comprehensive understanding was invaluable in preparing the case and explaining the complex situation to a family who was unfamiliar with the legal system.
The final hearing took place in March 2025. During the hearing, James Fletcher resolutely challenged the NCA investigators and made stellar representations to the Court on the family’s behalf. After two days of evidence, the Court delivered its final judgement.
The Court agreed that the transfer system was being taken advantage of by criminals but ruled that it would be disproportionate to forfeit the money where the clients were blameless. They ruled that the original sale was entirely legal, that the client had not benefitted in any way and that taking the monies would cause considerable hardship to the family’s way of living. The Court relied on the European Convention of Human Rights, Article 1 of Protocol 1 to justify their decision. This article states that ‘every natural or legal persons is entitled to the peaceful enjoyment of his possessions.’
This Court ruling has allowed a hard-working family to enjoy the fruits of their labour and access their retirement fund. After the judgment was handed down, the family said the following:
‘Jacqui acted as our solicitor for a case which started with an AFO and finished with a court hearing for forfeiture of frozen funds. Jacqui and her colleague Meghan were involved from very early on until the very end, and at every step along the way were there to guide us through the challenging and disconcerting times of the case. Jacqui’s communication with us was excellent throughout. We always got the feeling that she was going over and above to assist us in every way she could. The amount of work that she and her team at Richard Nelson LLP did throughout the case was truly impressive. From our very first contact, she provided us with invaluable advice until the very end. Moreover, she recommended the barrister for us to use for the hearings. Jacqui was instrumental in the outcome of our case, which we won thanks to her diligence and professionalism. But aside from that, what we found in Jacqui, and which stuck with us, was someone who genuinely cared for us and the difficult situation in which we found ourselves. With no hesitation would I recommend Jacqui and the team at Richard Nelson LLP. We feel incredibly fortunate to have had Jacqui on our team and could not have imagined a more competent and caring solicitor.’
If your account has been subject to an account freezing order, you should seek legal advice and can contact Jacqui Callan and Megan Delaney in our criminal defence team for assistance with your query.
