Written question asked by Lord Marlesford (Conservative), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord West of Spithead (Labour) on Tuesday, 5 January 2010.

Crime: Suspicious Activity Reports

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many individuals have entries on the Elmer database of suspects under the suspicious activity reports regime administered by the Serious Organised Crime Agency; and, of those, how many are the result of reports made anonymously or by unknown sources.

Answer: The Serious Organised Crime Agency's database, known as Elmer, on which suspicious activity reports (SAR) are recorded, does not have the capability to provide information on the number of names held. Each SAR may contain multiple names, and any one name may appear on multiple SARs. Out of 228,834 SARs received in the period from October 2008 to September 2009, 68 were recorded as coming from an anonymous reporter and 115 from an unknown reporter.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 772; 716 c16WA
Session: 2009-10
Related items: Crime: Suspicious Activity Reports
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Written questions
House of Lords
Subjects: Databases Organised crime Money laundering Serious Organised Crime Agency
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk