This is what £1.6m of 'dirty money' seized from criminals looks like

Criminals in the West Midlands have been ordered to pay back more than £1.6 million in the last 12 months.

They are forced to hand over the money through court orders, if it can be proved that they financially benefitted from their crimes.

More than 100 confiscation or forfeiture orders have been secured in the last 12 months resulting in the £1.6 million sum of 'dirty money.'

If criminals don't pay - they face extended prison sentences, although the debt never goes away and officers are able to recover what is owed in the future.

The recovered money can compensate victims or is invested into helping communities

Detective Chief Inspector Alex Pritchard, said: "We know that criminals involved in the likes of drug dealing and fraud are likely to have accrued large sums of money from their illegal activities.

"So them being convicted and jailed is not the end of things, it's just the start for us as we seek to trace the cash and prove it's 'dirty money.'

"These can often be complex enquiries but we have very skilled staff who are able to pinpoint their illegal gains and ensure that crime doesn't pay."