The best practices in this Guide are aimed at increasing the effectiveness of law enforcement and investigative authorities in the conduct of parallel financial investigations.
The effective conduct of financial investigations requires as a precondition an appropriate regulatory environment that provides the necessary tools to investigators. Any parallel financial investigation should be formally initiated by a competent authority on the basis of sufficient evidence and conducted in accordance with the requirements of the legal system and with full respect for the individual rights of the persons under investigation. In general, investigators should have access to all legitimate, relevant and useful sources of information for the development of financial investigations. It is advisable to establish channels of communication between authorities to ensure a regular, rapid and secure exchange of information.
The early location, identification and tracing of criminal property or assets should be considered a priority in criminal investigations. Law enforcement and investigative authorities should have the necessary human and technical resources to effectively initiate, conduct and conclude parallel financial investigations.
The Guide is complemented by a series of annexes with supplementary information. In particular, it includes an exemplary list of sources of information potentially useful in the development of a parallel financial investigation. At this point, it would be advisable for countries to map the sources of information available in the jurisdiction, so that investigators are aware of them and can make effective use of them.
