Under s 41Q of the Crimes (Confiscation of Profits) Act 1986, the prosecution need not prove a specific predicate offence; it suffices to prove the money had the character of being derived from the commission of 'a serious offence'. Police who fit a listening device to a civilian witness and turn it on and off do not 'install', 'use' or 'maintain' the device within s 6(1) of the Surveillance Devices Act 1999 where the witness independently controls the device during the recording.
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