Aon recruits ex-policeman as extortion consultant

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Aon recruits ex-policeman as extortion consultant

Aon Crisis Management has recruited Sam Nicholls, formerly a senior member of the British police who investigated multinational extortion, to lead a new team dedicated to extortion consultancy.

Aon has created the extortion consultancy team as a direct response to the rising frequency of commercial extortion cases occurring within the UK.

Nicholls brings to the team more than three decades of experience in the police, during which time he climbed the ranks to become National Coordinator of Operations for Domestic Extremism.

The onset of rising extortion has been very recent, according to Nicholls, who states that there were around 23 cases each year from 2003-6, which leapt to 40 last year and 67 in the last 12 months.

However, he is well aware of the undoubted underestimation of the statistics, with many firms fearing damage to their reputation and opting to quickly and silently pay out.

Nicholls advises firms not to pay extortionists, explaining that once they pay out they are more likely to be targeted again.

Aon’s crisis consulting director, Craig Preston, adds that extortionists can be anyone from disgruntled employees to terrorists.

To combat the potential problem, Nicholls suggests planning ahead, and creating a response team for such an eventuality.

Although the police can and will offer support and advice, the decision to pay out or not can only be taken by the company involved, he adds.