A criminal behind a major conspiracy to produce cannabis has been ordered to pay back more than £1m, including funds he had laundered by buying houses, land and a wind turbine.
Dale Richmond, who is currently serving a nine-and-a-half-year sentence, has been given just under three months to fork out the cash or serve a further six-and-a-half years in jail.
The Confiscation Order was made at Nottingham Crown Court on Friday (14 December) following a complex investigation by Nottinghamshire Police.
The 56-year-old, of Mansfield Road, Ravenshead, was originally sentenced to eight years in prison on 15 October 2015 after being found guilty of conspiracy to produce cannabis and six counts of money laundering.
This was after Nottinghamshire Police launched Operation Nabit after finding a cannabis farm and large amounts of cash during a warrant at Richmond’s business, Ravenshead Plant Centre in Mansfield Road, in June 2013 – which led to the network of money laundering.
In March 2017, Richmond was also convicted at Nottingham Crown Court of two further offences of money laundering. He was sentenced to a further 18 months imprisonment, to run consecutively, making his total sentence now nine-and-a-half years.
In the Confiscation Order hearing last week, the court determined he had illegally made £1.05m which he must now hand over – and that he currently has £927,091 of recoverable assets.
Financial Investigator Ray Goddard said: “This has been a complex case to investigate and the Confiscation Orders granted in this case show our commitment to try and prevent individuals from benefitting from their criminal enterprises.”
Detective Inspector Robert Routledge said: “The £1m benefit figure determined against Richmond is a huge success and will remain on his criminal file until it is paid in full – the debt will not disappear even if he is to serve the prison sentence in default.
“The Judge overseeing the proceedings, His Honour Judge Jeremy Lea, also saw fit to grant compliance orders against Richmond, which will help to recover the assets he owns. This is a fantastic result for Nottinghamshire Police.”
