Richard Alderman, Director of the Serious Fraud Office
Richard Alderman has been the Director of the SFO since April 2008.
Biography
Richard Alderman is a barrister. Before joining the SFO he was Director of National Teams and Special Civil Investigations in HM Revenue and Customs where he was responsible for 3000 staff carrying out specialised tax investigations. This role (and previous roles in the Inland Revenue) gave him extensive experience of complex financial investigations. As Director of the Revenue's Special Compliance Office from 2003 to 2005, he was responsible for all of the criminal investigations carried out by the Inland Revenue. These included very complex cases that are similar in weight and complexity to the workload of the SFO.
Before becoming Director of Special Compliance Office, Richard had been the senior lawyer in the Revenue's Solicitor's Office where he was responsible for the conduct of criminal prosecutions. These roles have given him experience in both the investigation as well as in the prosecution of complex fraud.
Richard has also carried out other key roles in the Government Legal Service. In 2002, he was invited by the Attorney General and the Treasury Solicitor to work with the Home Office to set up the Assets Recovery Agency and subsequently became its first Legal Director. He was seconded to the Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers between 1991 and 1993 and worked closely with the Law Officers in that role.
Richard is 57 years old and is married, with one daughter.
