THEODOROUSLAW FIRMSpeak to a solicitor
Home/Pre-Charge Representations

Before a charging decision

Money Laundering Pre-Charge Investigations

If you are under investigation for money laundering and have not been charged, the financial evidence should be organised before the charging decision. We assess the alleged criminal property, source of funds, account ownership and control, transaction history, communications, knowledge or suspicion, and any linked fraud or POCA investigation before advising on further enquiries or pre-charge representations.

Request a pre-charge reviewPolice interview not happened yet?

IS THIS THE RIGHT STAGE?

Are you at the right stage for pre-charge representations?

The opportunity usually exists after the allegation and interview are understood but before a final charging decision. The question is not whether a letter can be sent; it is whether there is defence material, a missing enquiry, a legal issue or a public-interest point capable of improving the information on which the police or CPS will decide.

Interview completedYou have given an account and the investigation remains open.
On pre-charge bailYou have a bail return or review date and a charging decision may be approaching.
Released under investigationThere is no fixed bail date, but the police are still gathering or reviewing evidence.
File with the CPSThe case may already be with a reviewing prosecutor, but no final charge has been authorised.
Send us the key facts firstAllegation • police force • interview date • bail/RUI status • next date • core defence material
Request a pre-charge review

What matters before a money laundering charging decision?

Money laundering allegations under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 depend on more than money moving through an account. The prosecution theory must identify property said to be criminal property and the conduct said to amount to laundering, together with the relevant mental element. The source, ownership, purpose and context of transactions can therefore be central.

Bank statements alone may not explain a transaction. Business records, invoices, contracts, tax material, messages, loan documents, sale records, account mandates and evidence about third-party funds may be needed to establish the true commercial or personal context. The chronology should be built around the specific transactions relied upon by investigators.

When pre-charge intervention may be useful

Intervention may be justified where investigators have not considered reliable source-of-funds material, an account or transaction has been attributed incorrectly, a legitimate business explanation can be evidenced, the alleged link to criminal conduct is incomplete, communications have been read without context, or a specific banking or third-party enquiry could materially change the evidential assessment.

Timing matters.

Representations should usually be made when the defence understands enough of the allegation to make targeted submissions and while the decision-maker can still act on them. Sending an unfocused letter too early can be ineffective; waiting until after charge can remove the opportunity altogether.

How we analyse a money laundering investigation

We identify the suspected laundering offence, the property or transactions relied upon, any alleged predicate criminality and the evidence said to establish knowledge or suspicion. We then build a transaction chronology and test it against banking records, business documents, communications and the client’s explanation.

Where the evidence justifies it, representations can address whether the property is shown to be criminal property, whether the suspect had the required knowledge or suspicion, whether there is an innocent or commercial explanation, whether account control has been overstated and what further records or enquiries should be considered before charge.

What can the pre-charge strategy seek to achieve?

The aim is to ensure that the financial case is assessed on complete records rather than unexplained account entries or assumptions about ownership and purpose. Depending on the evidence, that may lead to further enquiries, narrowing of the alleged transaction set or role, reconsideration of the proposed offence, or no further action. No result can be guaranteed.

What should you send us for the first review?

ChronologyA clear sequence of events, including key communications and dates.
DocumentsMessages, emails, records, photographs, receipts or other relevant material.
Witness materialPotential witnesses who can address disputed or contextual facts.
Personal impactEmployment, professional, health or family consequences where legally relevant.

WHAT YOU ARE ACTUALLY PAYING FOR

What do you receive if you instruct us?

The value is in identifying the points capable of affecting the decision, obtaining or preserving the right material, and presenting the defence case in a form the investigator or prosecutor can properly assess.

Case and charging analysisWe identify the alleged offence, the issues the prosecution would need to prove, the present investigation stage and the realistic decisions available before charge.
Defence evidence planWe identify messages, CCTV, records, witnesses, expert material or other evidence that may undermine the allegation, support the defence account or expose a missing line of enquiry.
Written representationsWhere the timing and evidence justify it, we prepare structured submissions addressing evidential sufficiency, legal issues, reasonable enquiries, public interest and any lawful alternative to prosecution.
Follow-up and next-step adviceWe send the representations to the appropriate decision-maker, deal with sensible follow-up where required and advise on the response, further investigation or any charging decision.

When paid pre-charge work may not be justified

Sometimes the correct advice is not to send representations yet. We may advise that better evidence should first be obtained, a particular enquiry should be requested, the interview position should be protected, or a defence point should not be disclosed prematurely. If a letter would add little, be disproportionate to the issue or create unnecessary strategic risk, we will say so. No solicitor can guarantee that a charge will be avoided.

Current legal frameworkOur approach is grounded in the current Code for Crown Prosecutors, the Director’s Guidance on Charging and the disclosure framework. As at September 2026 the CPS is consulting on a draft ninth edition of the Code; that draft is not yet the operative Code and is not relied on as if it were in force.
Code for Crown ProsecutorsDirector's Guidance on ChargingAttorney General's Disclosure Guidelines

Pre-charge strategy

The financial trail must prove more than movement of money

A useful pre-charge review separates three questions: what property or funds are alleged to derive from criminal conduct, what the suspect is alleged to have done with them, and what evidence establishes the required knowledge or suspicion. Those questions should then be tested transaction by transaction against the underlying records.

Criminal property and source of funds

We test the evidential basis for treating the relevant money or property as criminal property. That can involve tracing the alleged benefit from criminal conduct, examining legitimate income or business receipts, identifying transfers between connected accounts and matching transactions to invoices, contracts, sales, loans or other underlying records.

Banking, account-control and third-party enquiries

Reasonable enquiries may include obtaining complete bank records, identifying account mandates and device access, tracing counterparties, recovering payment references or supporting invoices, checking company records, identifying the true beneficial owner of funds and obtaining communications that explain why a payment was made or received.

Knowledge, suspicion and the alleged laundering act

The principal POCA money laundering offences cover different conduct. Section 327 concerns concealing, disguising, converting, transferring or removing criminal property; section 328 concerns arrangements which a person knows or suspects facilitate another person’s acquisition, retention, use or control of criminal property; and section 329 concerns acquisition, use or possession of criminal property. The analysis must match the offence actually under consideration and test both whether the property is criminal property and the evidence said to establish the required knowledge or suspicion, rather than treating account association alone as sufficient.

Parallel fraud, restraint and account-freezing issues

A money laundering investigation may overlap with fraud allegations, account freezing orders, restraint proceedings, cash or asset forfeiture and later confiscation exposure. Defence decisions at the investigation stage should account for those parallel risks, particularly when providing financial explanations or documents.

Evidence commonly relevant to money laundering investigations

  • a detailed signed account or witness statement from the client where tactically appropriate;
  • messages, emails, call data and social-media records preserved in original form;
  • CCTV, doorbell footage, photographs and location material;
  • employment, medical, education or character material where it is genuinely relevant;
  • documents showing ownership, payment, consent, authority or chronology;
  • expert or specialist evidence where the issue cannot fairly be resolved without it;
  • a schedule identifying the exact enquiries or material sought from investigators.
Timing matters: representations are usually more useful before the file is finally determined. If a charging decision appears imminent, tell us the bail or review date and provide the core papers as early as possible.
FEES & SCOPEWe scope the work around the decision that is actually approaching.A defined private instruction can include review of the allegation and interview, analysis of the available evidence, an evidence or enquiry plan, written pre-charge representations and proportionate follow-up. Where the scope can be identified in advance we can quote a fixed fee. Larger evidence sets, witness work, conferences, expert material or continuing liaison may require a wider scope. We confirm the work and fee before starting.
Request a case reviewHow our fees work →

UNDERSTAND THE STAGE

Guides linked to pre-charge strategy

Pre-charge engagement guideThe recognised voluntary process after interview and before charge, including enquiries and disclosure considerations.What happens after a police interview?Bail, RUI, further enquiries, charging decisions and the practical steps to take while the case remains open.Released under investigationWhat RUI means, how the investigation continues and why an open-ended investigation still needs active case management.Pre-charge bailBail conditions, review dates, investigation management and the relationship between bail and the charging timetable.
LEGAL GUIDEUpdated 30 September 2026

Prepared by Theodorous. Principal Solicitor: Paris Theodorou.

Official sourcesProceeds of Crime Act 2002 — legislation.gov.ukMoney Laundering Offences prosecution guidance — CPSProceeds of Crime guidance — CPS

Before charge

If the investigation is still open, use the time before charge properly.

Send us the suspected money laundering offence, police or investigating agency, interview date, bail or RUI status, next known date and the key banking, source-of-funds or business records. We can assess whether pre-charge intervention is strategically justified and which transactions or enquiries should be prioritised.

Request a pre-charge case review

Frequently asked questions

Pre-charge representation FAQs

What does “criminal property” mean?

Under POCA, property is criminal property where it constitutes or represents a benefit from criminal conduct and the alleged offender knows or suspects that it does. A pre-charge review should therefore examine both the alleged origin of the property and the evidence said to establish the required state of mind.

Does the prosecution have to prove the exact underlying offence?

Not always in the same way. In a standalone laundering case, criminal property may be proved by evidence of the type of offending that generated it or, in an appropriate case, by circumstances capable of supporting the necessary inference that the property could only have derived from crime.

Is using someone else’s bank account automatically money laundering?

No. Account ownership or association can be relevant evidence, but the prosecution still has to prove the ingredients of the particular offence, including the relevant act or arrangement and the required knowledge or suspicion.

Why is source-of-funds evidence important?

Bank statements, contracts, invoices, tax material, business records and contemporaneous communications can help test whether funds have an innocent or commercial source and whether the prosecution interpretation of particular transactions is complete.

Can pre-charge representations guarantee no further action?

No. They can identify weaknesses in the criminal-property case, innocent explanations, attribution issues, missing records or reasonable lines of enquiry that may affect the charging decision, but the final decision remains with the investigator or prosecutor.