Saleh v SFO: POCA Proceedings And Foreign Judgments

The Serious Fraud Office ('SFO') obtained a Property Freezing Order ('PFO') in respect of over £4 million credited to a UK bank account, which constituted the proceeds of sale of 800,000 shares in a Canadian oil and petroleum corporation (GEI).

The defendant was the owner of the GEI shares. The SFO alleged that the acquisition of the shares was one of a series of corrupt transactions involving the defendant and others, entered into by GEI in order to secure development rights over two oil blocks in Chad.

A criminal prosecution proceeded in Canada and forfeiture proceedings were commenced against the defendant but were subsequently withdrawn. An order was drafted which formalised the withdrawal of the forfeiture proceedings (the 'Order'). The Order included wording in the recital to the effect that, as no evidence had been put before the court upon which it could be satisfied that the defendant was involved in criminal conduct, the judgment of the court was that the shares were neither crime related proceeds nor offence related property. The Order included the words "This Order/ Judgment of this Court is to be construed as a judgment in rem" (that is to say, an order in relation to the ownership of the asset and potentially binding against the public at large).

The defendant appealed the PFO in the UK on the grounds that the effect of the Order was to preclude the SFO from obtaining a PFO in the UK in respect of the proceeds of sale of the shares, given that the Order held that the shares...