Criminal Gangs Research Articles

Just How Profitable Is Illicit Tobacco in Australia?

In the past 12 months, the southern Australian state of Victoria has been in the midst of what may be a ‘turf war’ between rival organised crime groups for the control of the sale of illicit tobacco products. While organised crime has been more traditionally associated with the distribution and sale of narcotic drugs, illegal gaming venues, prostitution services or human trafficking, recent events might suggest that distribution of untaxed tobacco is now another source of income for criminal gangs. This paper does not look to connect organised crime with illicit tobacco but rather looks at the extent of potential profits to be made from sourcing and distributing tobacco products on which the appropriate federal duties and taxes have not been paid, and whether this could be a possible ‘driver’ in attracting organised crime to the product. Using publicly available data, this paper will propose a methodology and use that methodology to gauge the potential profitability in relation to a container of imported illicit cigarettes.

The Perils of Service Provision in Unsafe Areas: Providing Continuing Services to Youth during Gang Violence in the Cape Flats, South Africa

Youth involvement in criminal gangs is rife in a particular area of Cape Town, the capital city of Western Cape, South Africa, known as the Cape Flats. But the Cape Flats is not unique and the youth’s susceptibility to join these gangs cuts across cultures and societies. Wherever there is marginalisation and disadvantage, social issues emerge that are difficult to combat because of systemic and structural barriers. Community workers and those who live in these areas are often at their wits end trying to combat the allure that gang membership holds for their teenage children. This article reports on a study that was part of a larger research study conducted between 2016–2018 by social work students at a university situated in the area. The article reflects the findings of the 2018 study that focused on the perceptions and experiences of those who work or provide services in the area. The aim of the study was to explore the participants’ experiences of gang violence during service provision and their opinions about ways to address their concerns. A qualitative approach, utilising an intervention mapping design was used. Individual interviews were conducted with 325 service providers on the Cape Flats. Two main themes emerged from thematic data analysis, namely, impact on service providers and service delivery, and suggested interventions and solutions. The implications of the findings are that the increasing violence has severe consequences on service provision in communities and is disruptive and traumatising to everybody involved.

Introduction to the special issue on the consequences of immigration policies on children, youth, and families who experience migration-related trauma.

We are excited to introduce this special issue on the consequences of immigration policies on children, youth, and families who experience migration-related trauma. International migration has increased over the last 5 decades. Recent estimates suggest that 281 million people live in a country other than the one in which they were born (McAuliffe & Triandafyllidou, 2021). These migratory patterns are complex and present both challenges and opportunities for trauma psychologists and professionals from diverse disciplines who approach their work with immigrants from a trauma-informed perspective. In this 21st century, a variety of stressors and crises continue to propel the movement of children, youth, and families across the globe. Trauma often pervades the experiences that cause people to leave their homes. They may need to escape oppressive political systems; criminal gangs, war, or disasters; or simply to survive. Migration itself can lead to exposure to additional traumatic events, such as physical and sexual violence, kidnapping, and trafficking. Finally, upon arrival in a host country, individuals may experience further stressors as they struggle to navigate immigration systems with discriminatory processes and inadequate resources. In this special issue, 14 articles illustrate various ways by which migration-related traumatic experiences can inform assessment and treatment, public health policy, and human rights advocacy. Focusing primarily on children and families, unaccompanied youth, and adult migrants from Latin America and other regions, the authors explore premigration, migration itself, and postmigration issues that arise when individuals migrate to survive. The articles highlight how the resiliency and strength of individuals and families can be called upon to empower them in their journey toward healing and the critical need for cross-disciplinary treatment and advocacy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Civil Rights, Fascism’s Legacy, and Italian American Material Culture in Scorsese’s Mean Streets

This essay offers a material culture reading of Martin Scorsese’s 1973 film, Mean Streets, highlighting how the film narrates not only a small-time criminal gang in working-class New York City but a decidedly Italian American one, caught within a specific time and place. The film, emphasizing a neorealist style, is full of visual reminders of the ways objects—the things of everyday life—inform and reflect the lived experiences of an ethnic community, one that is alive, changing, and resilient, even as it may seem to possess, and almost embrace, a closed and stagnant sense of itself. In particular, I focus on what I refer to as “silent presences” in the film, especially around the Italian-American Civil Rights League of the 1970s and a legacy of Fascism. In so doing, I demonstrate how the characters’ layered prejudices and ethnic boosterism are in part defined by and defining the setting of the film in a manner that ultimately keeps those same characters away from assimilation in a time period when their neighborhood is changing. Focusing on the objects and materiality that structures the film’s setting helps illustrate how the characters react against change, against wholesale assimilation, retaining and reshaping Italian American identity along the way.

How to fight fake papers: a review on important information sources and steps towards solution of the problem.

Scientific fake papers, containing manipulated or completely fabricated data, are a problem that has reached dramatic dimensions. Companies known as paper mills (or more bluntly as "criminal science publishing gangs") produce and sell such fake papers on a large scale. The main drivers of the fake paper flood arethe pressure in academic systems and (monetary) incentives to publish in respected scientific journals and sometimes the personal desire for increased "prestige." Published fake papers cause substantial scientific, economic, and social damage. There are numerous information sources that deal with this topic from different points of view. This review aims to provide an overview of these information sources until June 2024. Much more original research with larger datasets is needed, for example on the extent and impact of the fake paper problem and especially on how to detect them, as many findings are based more on small datasets, anecdotal evidence, and assumptions. A long-term solution would be to overcome the mantra of publication metrics for evaluating scientists in academia.

Hard to reach? Methodological challenges researching vulnerable, gang-involved, young people.

Research with young people (YP) is ethically challenging and bound in a complex maze of issues relating to power, voice and representation. Such sensitivities mean that the challenges raised in researching marginalised YP are often hard to navigate. This paper reports on research carried out with YP to explore links between mental health, school exclusion and involvement in criminal gangs. It aims to provide a practical guide to negotiating some of the methodological and ethical challenges experienced. In-depth interviews conducted with 28 YP (aged 14-24 years) who were gang involved or seen to be at risk of gang involvement. Research was conducted in youth clubs, alternative provision and youth justice settings. OBSERVATIONS/REFLECTIONS: We reflect on how navigating ethics can create barriers to involving YP as primary informants in research. We consider why it is important to overcome these hurdles and how public engagement work with recognised gatekeepers and the use of creative interview methods can facilitate meaningful encounters, where YP feel able to share valuable insights into their lives. Alongside a number of specific learning points, the paper reflects on theories behind research with YP, including the need for recognition of power imbalances and reflexivity. It concludes with thoughts on the practical realities of achieving meaningful participation or an 'authentic voice' with marginalised groups and the importance of this in informing policy and practice. The focus of this work was to collect experiences of YP who are recognised as gang-involved or at risk of being so, with a view to informing health and education policies. The scoping study for the project involved extensive public engagement work with YP exploring and trialling suitable methods of accessing, recruiting and ultimately interviewing this target group. This is central to the discussion within the body of the paper.

The Role of Criminal Gangs in the Farmers-Herders Conflict in Guma Local Government Area, Benue State, Nigeria

The Role of Criminal Gangs in the Farmers-Herders Conflict in Guma Local Government Area, Benue State, Nigeria

Links between terrorism financing and organised crime in Nigeria

Purpose This study aims to assess terrorism activities to identify measures required to mitigate the rise of terrorism activities and their metamorphosis into organised criminal activity through the prevention, disruption and dismantling of sources of financing terrorism. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative methodology was adopted for this study using descriptive synthesis from recent publications and reports of reputable organisations, i.e. relevant grey literature, key informant interview and a focus group discussion. This triangulation approach was used to cross-validate the findings. Findings The findings revealed that terrorism financing is most likely linked to organised crime for generating revenues and is further used to finance the activities of terrorists. Practical implications Terrorists operate from places with little or no presence of governance and, better still, ungovernable spaces for carrying out legitimate businesses, raising internally generated revenues from protection fees, ransoms and taxes. This space further allows domestic collaboration with local criminal gangs to exploit natural mineral resources. If the market for these resources is across borders, international or transnational criminal groups collaborate with terrorists to move the goods and assist with financial services for the generated proceeds. Originality/value This study assessed the emerging links between terrorism financing and organised crime in Nigeria.

Decentralization and Criminal Gangs in El Salvador: Impacts on Municipal Finances and Local Economic Development

Recent literature has argued that decentralization can create new forms of leverage for criminal gangs, increasing their territorial presence and levels of violence. In this article we reverse the causal arrow and analyze how gangs affect the performance of decentralized institutions. We study the case of El Salvador, a country with the ubiquitous presence of gangs. We find that the higher presence of gangs reduced municipalities’ fiscal revenues, thereby increasing their dependence on transfers from the central government. This result is mostly driven by mid-size municipalities, as the effect is not significant for small and large municipalities. In addition to depressing revenues, gang presence was also associated with lower municipal spending and less service provision, effectively hollowing out municipal governance. The drop in municipal spending is particularly strong in capital spending and in small municipalities. The article also finds that gangs undermine economic activity – not just in the municipalities where they operate but through spill-over effects in neighboring jurisdictions as well.

The Crime of Trafficking in Human Organs through the Information System: Comparative study

Crimes no longer occur in their simple traditional form, as the development of human societies contributed to the development of crime and the creation of crimes that were not known before, and among these crimes is the crime of trafficking in human organs through the information system, which is one of the crimes that aided technical progress in the field of communications, information technology and the field of modern medicine to spread it; Organized criminal gangs took advantage of the facilities resulting from the development of information and communication technology to trade in human organs, which contributed to the creation of an electronic black market for human organs mafia gangs. The importance of this study stems from the fact that it is different from traditional crimes and is one of the issues emanating from technological progress and the development of organized crime. The study aims to clarify the provisions of the crime of trafficking in human organs through the information system, according to the comparative approach between the Saudi system and the UAE law. The results of the study showed that the Saudi regulator did not explicitly stipulate human organ trafficking in the cybercrime system, but was implicitly included as a form of criminal behavior for the crime of human trafficking in the Saudi human trafficking crime system, unlike the UAE law, which stipulates organ trafficking alongside human trafficking. According to the Saudi system, this crime is considered electronic if it occurs through the information network or a computer. In light of its results, the study concluded the following recommendations: 1. The Saudi cybercrime system explicitly provides for the criminalization of electronic trafficking in human organs as one of the forms of cybercrime, similar to its counterpart in UAE law. 2. Community awareness of the seriousness of this crime, the speed with which it is being investigated via the Internet, the ease with which offenders attract individuals, and financial reward for those who report or contribute to the commission of this crime.

A mathematical model of criminal gang rivalry: Understanding the dynamics and implications

This present paper considers the dynamics of two criminal gangs in a criminally active population. In our deterministic approach, we present the gang rivalry model to measure the impact of rivalry intensities at low and moderately high initiation rates. The qualitative and quantitative properties of the models are investigated using appropriate techniques that have proven to be effective. Based on the numerical simulation study, the initiation rates are observed to play a key role in the rise and fall of rivalry intensities in the criminally active period, which is characterized by a low level of law enforcement. Furthermore, this study reveals that by reducing the initiation rate between susceptible individuals and criminal gang groups, the rivalry intensities will be impacted for the overall public safety.

Can Ecuador Avoid Becoming a Narco-State?

Ecuador until recently was known as a haven of relative peace in its region, but it is in the process of being transformed by surging crime. The country’s homicide rate is now among the highest in Latin America; a presidential candidate campaigning on an anti-crime platform was assassinated in 2023. Since 2020, increasingly brazen narco-traffickers have been battling for control of the country’s ports, and criminal gangs are threatening to capture the state. The origins of the crisis date back a decade and a half, and it has gathered momentum with policy blunders by successive presidents on both left and right.

Political economy of sub-national fragility and armed conflict in Northwest Nigeria

ABSTRACT Insecurity in Nigeria’s Northwest region is fast deteriorating due to armed conflict emanating from the activities of jihadist terrorist groups, armed bandits, and other organised criminal gangs. This has claimed the lives of thousands, and displaced many others, resulting in a humanitarian crisis. While previous studies have highlighted the triggers and drivers of armed conflict in fragile states such as poverty, inequality, unemployment, poor governance, weak institutions, and climate change to mention a few, as well as the important role of the nation-state in providing safety and security for its citizens, little attention has been given to the relationship between sub-national fragility and armed conflict. This research draws attention to the less obvious ‘hidden enablers’ of armed conflict within the context of sub-national fragility, and how it inhibits their institutional capacities to guarantee the social welfare and security of their citizens. The absence of which contributes to the deteriorating insecurity situation in Nigeria’s troubled Northwest region. These include the debt crisis and declining internally generated revenue affecting the sub-national states. The research therefore advances the argument on sub-national fragility, by examining how it contributes to manifestations of armed conflict, and its implications for peace and security in Nigeria’s Northwest region.

The Constitution, Invasion, Immigration, and the War Powers of States

Abstract By express and implied reservation, the Constitution permits states to wage defensive war and take other military action in response to invasion, insurrection, and transnational criminal gangs. This article examines the under-researched area of state war powers and how they interact with federal military and other foreign affairs powers. It also recovers the meaning of the Constitution’s term “invasion” and demonstrates that several judicial decisions have construed that term far too narrowly. The article ends with reflections on justiciability and remedies in state war power cases.

Who’s watching Mr Big? Scenario operations and induced confessions

ABSTRACT Introduced in Australia in the late 1990s, the Mr Big investigative technique is a complex undercover police operation structured around a fictional criminal gang, which is created to build rapport with the suspect of a serious crime. The suspect is encouraged to confess to the crime to benefit from advantages and protection offered by the gang, including the possibility of influencing the outcome of any prosecution. Challenging Mr Big confessions in Australia has been unsuccessful. The lack of transparency and need for deception inherent in covert operations, however, exposes a potential for fabricated and coerced confessions and the risk of wrongful convictions. Scenario operations are not directly scrutinised by independent oversight bodies and an examination of reported cases suggests that Australian Mr Big operations do not involve covert police in unlawful activities that might been scrutinised under controlled operations regimes. This is a concern given a cultural predisposition within Australian law enforcement towards secrecy, rank-closing, and resistance to examination. We explore options for ensuring the safety of Mr Big convictions, including implementation of robust, independent oversight mechanisms, amendments to evidentiary rules about inducement-based confessions, and revised warning regimes to include direction on the need for caution in accepting scenario confessions.

Application and Feasibility Analysis of Network Models and Data Analysis in Combating Organized Crime

This article discusses and analyzes in detail the development potential and application of big data mining and network visualization analysis in combating organized crime. Firstly, the article emphasizes the importance of combating criminal gangs and organized crime in modern society, comparing them to the foundation of stable national development and the cornerstone of national progress. Then it explores the security challenges faced by modern society and more issues related to organized crime, including the problem of crime caused by the wealth gap caused by urbanization and economic development, as well as the outdated technology for cracking down on existing security crimes. This article provides a detailed introduction to the potential of big data mining and network visualization, as well as the advantages of these technologies in practical applications. It covers the collection, processing, sharing, and application of data. At the same time, network visualization is used to visualize crime data, helping decision-makers better understand the current situation and problems of public security and organized crime. The article also discusses the application of artificial intelligence and mobile internet technology in combating organized crime. And the potential of big data in improving urban governance. Finally, this article looks ahead and emphasizes that big data mining and network visualization analysis will continue to play an important role in optimizing social security, indicating the broad prospects of these technologies in the future transportation field.

Khalistan Movement and Narco-Terrorism

The use of savage violence to spread terror in the security forces and society to protect the fiefdom of narcotic smuggling is no longer confined to the smuggling gangs. It has been adopted by various political movements. The study’s focus on Sikh secessionist narco-terrorism sheds light on the expansion of drug-weapon trade to ransoms, kidnapping, money-laundering, human-smuggling, and the control of entertainment industry and professional sports. Beginning with smuggling operations during the height of the cold war in South Asia, the criminal gangs were strengthened and expanded their operations in the Punjab and among Sikh Diaspora. The financial resources bought political support, which enabled the Khalistan movement to establish powerful lobbies in the West. The links created by the underworld in the Punjab expanded worldwide with the help of Sikh Diaspora. This terror-based movement gave some state actors a chance to use the Sikh card to arm-twist India on its foreign policy of strategic autonomy. Danger of savage violence faced by the civilized world is precisely the use of narco-terrorist movements by the state actors.

The Impact of Insecurity on the Sustainable Development Goals in Nigeria.

The state of insecurity in Nigeria is a major challenge in the efforts to attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the country. Every region is under one form of security challenge or the other resulting into large scale destruction of lives, property and infrastructure, particularly in the northern part of the country. Consequently, the prevailing insecurity has almost grounded socio-economic activities thereby risking the attainment of the sustainable development goals in the country. This paper takes a critical look at the possibility of attaining the Global Goals in 2030 in the face of mounting security challenges. Secondary sources – books, journals, magazines, newspapers and the internet were the sources of data. For the country to make appreciable progress on the Global Goals, the paper recommends the resolution of the root causes of conflict through effective and honest engagement with disaffected groups and the promotion of national reconciliation. The need to intensify the fight against criminal gangs and the ongoing military efforts against Boko Haran was also recommended.

Research on Social Network Data Analysis and Criminal Network Identification in Criminal Law

Abstract The public security system is increasingly utilizing technology and big data for criminal network identification, making the identification of criminal suspects through social data a crucial aspect of current criminal network identification. Based on our research into the verbal features of networks used to portray criminal suspects, we constructed a criminal network identification system using social networks and complex network theory. We then designed the overall framework and main functional modules. We established the case data warehouse of public security agencies and built the social relationship network of criminal suspects. This paper compares the effectiveness of the complex network (CN) algorithm with other community delineation algorithms and utilizes the criminal network identification system it constructs for case data mining and analysis. The extended modularity values of the CN algorithm proposed in this paper on four real datasets are the largest among all algorithms, and the community delineation effect is optimal. In the mining of criminal gangs, a1, a3, and a15 represent the heads of the gangs, while a56 shares similar duty content with a1, a3, and a15, albeit at a lower rank. A65 is in charge of connecting and communicating with gang members.

Research on the Application of Social Network Data Mining Technology in Crime Analysis and Prevention

Abstract Social network data mining (SNDM) technology shows great application potential in crime analysis and prevention. This study focuses on revealing the characteristics, laws, and trends of criminal behavior through an in-depth analysis of criminal information in social networks. Using data mining techniques such as association rule mining, cluster analysis, and community discovery, the key information and organizational structure of criminal networks are successfully mined, which provides a powerful means of investigation and prevention for public security departments. It is found that important criminal clues are hidden in the user communication data in social networks, and the communication mode and hidden information between criminals can be revealed through association rule mining technology. Cluster analysis helps to identify gangs and hot spots with similar criminal behaviors, which provides important clues for further investigation. In addition, community discovery technology further reveals the internal structure and membership relationship of criminal gangs, which is helpful in deeply understanding the operation mode of criminal organizations and the spread path of criminal acts. Based on historical data and mining results, this study also constructs a crime trend prediction model, which provides timely early warning information for public security departments and helps to take measures to prevent and crack down on criminal acts in advance. On the whole, this study not only enriches the application theory of SNDM technology in the field of crime analysis but also provides new ideas and tools for actual crime investigation and prevention.