Campaign launched to tackle paramilitary money lenders
A new ‘Ending the Harm’ campaign has been launched in Northern Ireland to raise awareness of the devastating impact illegal money lenders have on the community.
The series of TV, radio and online adverts aims to address the “societal shrug” towards some actions of organised criminal gangs operating under the trappings of paramilitaries.
They highlight the impact on victims, but also on their families, the local community, and wider society.
Speaking at the launch of the campaign, Justice Minister Naomi Long said: “Illegal money lending is an under-reported crime, but one that is commonplace across communities in Northern Ireland and is a practice which is closely linked to paramilitary gangs.
“It is a crime that targets vulnerable people when they are at their most desperate.
“We know from research and evidence that this is yet another example of how paramilitaries and those linked to them try to coerce and control people and communities for their own gain.”
Also speaking at the campaign launch, PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Bobby Singleton said: “The people who purport to be helping people by offering them loans when they feel they have nowhere else to turn are not doing it for nothing.
“They will always want something in return – and I don’t just mean a hefty interest rate.
“In the long run, they will want more than their money back. They will charge you exorbitant interest rates and set unrealistic pay back targets.
“They will tell you that you are in their debt forever, they will threaten you and coerce you into getting involved in their criminal world - for example, they may tell you that you have to peddle their drugs for them, or ‘handle’ criminal property.”
ACC Singleton added: “My message is simple. Policing works for communities, particularly for those communities that engage and work with us.
“We are targeting the groups and individuals we suspect are responsible for exploiting the most vulnerable in our community.
“Ultimately, we all have a role to play in creating a safer society and ending the harm caused by these criminals.”
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