Organized Criminal Groups Research Articles

Development of new conceptual approaches to determining the forensic characteristics of the leader of organized criminal groups in the economic sphere

The article highlights an organized criminal group in the field of economy, as a stable association of persons who have organized themselves for regular joint criminal activity with a selfish purpose and to achieve control in a certain social sphere or in a certain territory. It is noted that the activities of organized criminal groups necessarily involve the assimilation of not only the «technology» of their functions, but also its ideology and psychology: norms оf so-called «hierarchical» behavior andcommunication; norms of discipline in the community; value orientation; recognition systems «own / foreign» and other elements of the criminal subculture. 
 When studying organized crime in the economic sphere, there are patterns in the nomination of a leader who, in criminal groups, is the organizer and head of all group criminal activity. The leader of an organized criminal group in the economicsphere performs certain functions: organizational, informational, strategic, normative-value and disciplinary. In particular, the leaders of organized criminal groups in the economic sphere are characterized by pragmatism, organizational skills, cunning and the desire to stand out among the group members. In general, the modern leader of an organized criminal community hasthe following characteristics: experience in criminal activity; strong will; fairly high level of mental abilities; the ability to keep one’s word; entrepreneurial spirit; communication skills; determination in actions; speed of orientation and ability to make decisions in difficult situations for the criminal community; the ability to ensure the secrecy of criminal offenses being preparedand initiated; knowledge of internal and external conditions of functioning of economic relations of the state; authoritarianism; cruelty; willingness to do anything to achieve the goal; the ability to subordinate others; belief in one’s own superiority; motivation and dominance of selfinterest - enrichment; lack of empathy; attitude towards people as a tool for achieving one’s goal.On the basis of research, we concluded that the leader of an organized criminal group in the field of economy is a dangerous criminal, an organizer who negatively affects other members of the group and who keeps them in submission and fear. Identifying and exposing him is an extremely difficult task.

A systematic literature review of money mule: its roles, recruitment and awareness

PurposeThis paper aims to provide a systematic literature review (SLR) on contemporary cardinal money mule issues.Design/methodology/approachThis paper reviews the most common money mule themes in perpetrating financial crime activities, especially its roles, recruitment and awareness. A systematic review protocol called preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis protocols is adopted for this study.FindingsMoney mules are used by organized criminal groups (OCG) or fraudster to launder illicit funds from outrageous criminal activities. They allow their accounts to be used for money laundering by OCG. The attacker, OCG or fraudsters would layer the stolen funds using money mule accounts. These money mules are recruited using various approaches, oftentimes deceived by opulent lifestyles to captivate the interest of potential money mules.Originality/valueThis paper presents money mule awareness needed by accountant, bank employees and the society. It is an unprecedented SLR on money mule. This paper will be beneficial for future money mule researchers, enforcement agencies and practitioners in banking industry.

Cryptography at the service of organized crime - a challenge for science and practice

Organized crime represents a serious threat to the security, economy, and sometimes for the legal order of the country. Criminal groups not only use the achievements of information and communication technologies (iCT) for the expansion of the organization, communication and management of activities and resources, but also invest, through secret and illegal channels, to develop their own applications of their own applications that they will use for their activities. Organized criminal groups themselves, the most powerful ones, have their iCT experts whose goal is not only to protect communication channels, but also to devise new ways of ?circumventing? and neutralizing police measures and techniques for detecting and monitoring their activities. Members of organized criminal groups to use those communication applications that enable encrypted transmission to electronic devices using the necessary operating system, enabling the installation of the application and the establishment of a connection to the internet in order to enable the necessary protected communication. There are also applications that allow the entire device to be encrypted, making it difficult to find its contents or discover the necessary information and evidence. This paper presents the characteristics of organized crime and their operating modes, with an emphasis on the use of cryptographic techniques. Case studies are illustrating the size and scope of abuse of encryption by organized criminal groups, by data on cases which were processed, as well as challenges in opposing the abuse of cryptography from a technical-technological and legal aspect, after that we provided guideline for improving the mechanisms for reduction of organized crime.

Suzbijanje nezakonite trgovine kulturnim dobrima

The criminal offences regarding cultural property include qualified forms of criminal offences and hard and rigorous sanctions. The public prosecutor, who manages preinvestigation proceedings and conducts investigations, and police should work urgent, so it is necessary to finish the forensic examination of the criminal place, to find all marks and objects, which may serve as evidences, post a wanted circular for a person and objects being searched for, in order to identify the perpetrators. In case when these types of crimes are committed by the organized criminal groups, public prosecutor in coordination with the police makes actions and special evidenciary actions, such as covert interception of communications, covert surveillance and audio and video recording, controlled delivery, undercover investigator and simulated deals. Bearing in mind that in practice there isn't significant number of criminal complaints submitted to the competent public prosecutor for crimes which objects are criminal goods, this situation can be consequence of several reasons, for example: some of these crimes are not recognized and perpetrators are not identified, some of these crimes are not reported to the competent authority, digitalization and modernization of the museums and libraries insure better protection of cultural property, small number of tax administration officers and police officers, who deal with this crimes, lack of technical capacities, lack of seminars and projects which have the aim to prevent these crimes and to improve the significance of cultural heritage for civilization. No matter of all these difficultes, public interest for cultural heritage exists because of the fact that cultural heritage makes the base of identification of one population who lived in certain local place. Insuring care of cultural heritage is primary interest of every state. In case that someone steals cultural property, or it becomes the object of illicit traffic, forging the documents of origin or undertaking actions of vandalism against cultural goods it is important to exist guarantees of efficient fulfilling actions and measures of competent authorities, urgent taking actions and to insure that qualified professionals work in this field. Adequate mechanisms for good and reliable cooperation and connection of competent authorities for identifying cultural goods, revealing the crimes and locating the cultural properties are conditions for success of criminal proceedings.

Civilne misije Evropske unije - slučaj misije EULEX Kosovo

By strengthening its internal strength over the years, the European Union as a supranational organization has shown interest and formed capacities for a stronger foreign policy and security influence on the environment in the last twenty years. The EULEX Kosovo mission was the first real and major test of European security policy in the field of civil affairs and internal security in conflict environments. The rule of law is one of the key civilizational achievements that are not easy to establish in modern societies, as was demonstrated in the case of Kosovo and Metohija, a part of the Republic of Serbia that has been accompanied by decades of security problems for the local population. The analysis of certain indicators that evaluate the rule of law, political stability, corruption and work of judicial and police bodies, indicated that the state of internal security in Kosovo and Metohija has not changed much since the establishment of the EULEX mission. Certain capacities of the temporary authorities in Prishtina in the area of customs, police, and justice have been established, especially in the adoption of the strategic and legal framework, and partly in the creation of adequate material working conditions. On the other hand, the fulfilled formal prerequisites did not produce results in the daily work of the institutions to protect the local population and their human, property, security and other rights. The existence of corruption in the judiciary, police, and customs was registered as a bigger problem, which is connected to the political influence of local authorities and their mutual connections and relations. This is indirectly reflected in the small number of convictions in cases of high corruption and especially organized crime. Kosovo and Metohija still belong to the areas that are highly influenced by organized criminal groups, with the possibility of manifesting terrorism and extremism. The EULEX mission and international forces did not provide the conditions for the return of over 200,000 displaced Serbs, and those who still live in Kosovo and Metohija face the lack of basic security conditions for a normal life. The ideas, principles, and guidelines of the CSDP of the EU have largely failed to be realized within the mission in Kosovo and Metohija for the last 14 years of implementation. There is a need for a detailed analysis by the expert bodies of the EU in order to better prepare and respond to future engagements, and overall to improve the credibility of the EU.

Technology of criminal activities of organized criminal groups operating in combat conditions

Technology of criminal activities of organized criminal groups operating in combat conditions

Sources providing financial support for organized criminal groups of extremist orientation

Sources providing financial support for organized criminal groups of extremist orientation

Актуальные проблемы сохранения балобана в республике Казахстан

Актуальные проблемы сохранения балобана в республике Казахстан

Essence and forms of counteraction of organized criminal groups to law enforcement authorities

Essence and forms of counteraction of organized criminal groups to law enforcement authorities

Security Implication of Mutual Police and Societal Corruption in Nairobi County, Kenya

This paper uses data collected for an MA Thesis on the security implication of the mutual police and societal corruption in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study was motivated by increased insecurity in Embakasi North constituency despite tight security in the area. This study attributed this to mutual police and societal corruption that this study sought to establish. This study was guided by the Erosion Theory (ET) of corruption explaining why so many potentially good people get drawn into the vice. The study used cross-sectional survey design and stratified random sampling techniques and enlisted, 196 respondents and 10 Key Informants (K. I’s). The main data collection methods were the questionnaires for the main respondents and interviews for K. I’s. The main data collection tools were the questionnaires and Key Informants schedules. Quantitative data will be analyzed with the aid of statistical package for social sciences (SPSS). This study unraveled both, Macro and Micro police contextual obstacles where the extent and implications of the state organs such as the legislature, executive, and justice sector institutions suggested corrupt political contexts, hence constraining policing function with criminological approaches to corruption. With reference to the second objective, the study revealed the main forms of police corruption in the area which included receiving bribes to; release suspects from lawful custody, assist suspects evade arrest, cover up criminal activities, reveal police operations; protection of illegal activities, evidence tampering & theft and disclosure of privileged Information amongst others. These forms of corruption benefited organized criminal groups, which were said to be potentially risky to an extent of disabling both individuals and entire institutions, besides seeking state capture; in polity and economy. Finally, the study revealed a deeper relationship between police and society corruption based on determinant factors such as culture (p=0.01), systemic failure of governance(p=0.01), and failed economy (p=0.02). Deeper insight of police corruption seems to draw from a society wide cultural corruption paradigm. This study recommends that recommends an anti-corruption approach that goes beyond targeting “bad apples” and adopt a systems approach. Further, Political will from a benevolent dictator with presidential degrees on matters corruption will help crush this cancerous vice to the nib.

ORGANIZED CRIMINAL GROUP IN THE CONTEXT OF TAX EVASION. THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL ASPECTS

The fact that following some controls carried out by the fiscal bodies, the crime of tax evasion was apprehended at some commercial companies on financial circuits whose object is different periods of time, those companies being constantly identified in collaboration with certain economic firms on the first criminal level and occasionally with other economic companies in the second financial circuit, does not constitute a sufficient reason to impose the reunification of the cases as long as, on the one hand, none of the situations provided for by article 43 Criminal Procedure Code (C.P.C.), and on the other hand, the resolution of the case is delayed by the ordered meeting. Regarding the crime of constituting an organized criminal group, in the case deduced for analysis, no typical elements could be proven that could objectively invoke that there was such an association between the investigated persons, a fact that led to the delay in the solution criminal investigations. When several people carry out an activity for an insignificant period, without continuity, its "members" do not have determined roles and there is no coordination of actions, an accusation in this sense cannot be proven.

The Pandemic and Organized Crime in Urban Latin America: New Sovereignty Arrangements or Business as Usual?

Using a focus on the ways that Covid-19 has impacted everyday life in urban Latin America, this article examines the shifting activities of organized criminal groups in the context of a global pandemic. Using grounded ethnographic fieldwork drawn from Brazil, it asks whether a health crisis with direct life and death consequences has empowered illicit actors, and by so doing changed longstanding relationships between illicit actors and citizens on one hand, and/or illicit actors and local authorities on the other. Its larger aim is to understand whether and how the global pandemic has impacted governance by producing new scalar and sovereignty tensions between state and non-state actors at the scale of the city, and with what implications for the legitimacy of national authorities and democratic governance more generally.

Addressing Migrant Smuggling in the European Union. Challenges for a Non-Criminalized, Coordinated and Effective Response

Migrant smuggling is a highly complex criminal phenomenon. Clearly cross-border in nature, smuggling frequently involves the participation of organized criminal groups. A coherent approach to these activities requires a clear and correctly implemented regulation, in the case of the EU the reference regulation is the ‘Facilitators’ package’. In the present contribution several controversies that this framework entails will be pointed out, especially the excessive criminalization and the neglect of the human rights perspective. Furthermore, the eradication of smuggling requires the sum of efforts and coordinated action of different actors such as national authorities and European agencies. In this paper some actions carried out by Europol in the Mediterranean will be studied. Focusing on the role of this law enforcement agency in the hotspots, the contribution of the information gathered and the benefits for Eurojust will be evaluated.
 Received: 31 July 2022Accepted: 10 October 2022

The role of the academic community in combating wildlife trafficking

In Indonesia, the value of the illegal trade in wildlife reaches more than US one million per year. Apart from being a source country, Indonesia also has a significantly growing home market for illegally traded wildlife as pets, skins, and medicines.The illegal wildlife trade uses various modus operandi, directed by organized criminal groups and carried out by a variety of perpetrators on the ground, often very poor locals from rural communities. Whilst this trading activity is a transnational crime, that is, across national and continental borders, and may use the same supply routes usually associated with other crimes such as weapons, drugs and people trafficking, it is usually only the poachers on the ground who are caught and prosecuted. In summary, universities and their researchers have a significant role in the fight against the illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade, in monitoring wildlife populations and poaching activity, and in changing people's behavior, so that the activities of hunting, trading, or owning protected wildlife become unattractive and unacceptable to all communities. This role draws on disciplines across the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities, encouraging those interdisciplinary behaviours so important for effective environmental management that delivers for the long-term health and well-being of people.

Individual Characteristics and Punitive Practice for the Women Accused of Illegal Possesion and Distribution of Drugs or Psychoactive Substances

According to the official statistical data, in Lithuania, female offenders make up approximately 10% of the convict population and 5% of the prison population (Department of Statistics, 2022). Due to rather small numbers of women drawn into the criminal world, female offenders and their specific needs are often hardly visible to the representatives of the law enforcement and correctional system. Therefore, the punitive practices applied to female offenders as well as the social context of their criminal behavior remain understudied topics in Lithuania. The main purpose of this study is to uncover the individual characteristics and the offending circumstances of the women accused of illegal posession and distribution of drugs. Also, this study includes the analysis of the sentencing trends for female culprits of drug-related crimes. The analysis of court practice and the interviews with the sentenced women has shown that, compared to males, females had no stable source of income and had to take care of the children and other family members more often. In addition, unlike males, females did not distribute drugs in the organized criminal groups, while the additional offences were mostly related to drug abuse rather than any other complicated criminal scheme. Finally, the comparison of sentencing trends has shown that Lithuanian courts tend to be more merciful towards women as they where imposed with shorter prison sentences. This study is one of the few attempts to explore the social context of female criminal behavior which will hopefully encourage to individualize the sentences imposed to female offenders.

Current Prospects for Cooperation Between the Russian Federation and the CIS Member States on the Organization of Interstate Investigative Groups

The growing complexity of criminal activity, the increasing number of registered grave and very grave crimes, the crimes committed by organized criminal groups and associations, the evasion of punishment by persons who committed crimes on the territory of one state and then hid from the law enforcement agencies on the territory of another one - these are some of the factors that make it necessary to improve the mechanisms of legal collaboration and cooperation between different countries in the sphere of criminal court proceedings. The facts of modern life set for the state the aim of not only reacting promptly to the crimes that are being and have been committed, and prosecuting persons guilty of these crimes timely and in accordance with the law, but also the aim of creating conditions that would improve the mechanisms of collaboration and cooperative investigation of crimes. This collaboration includes, first of all, the organization of cooperative investigative groups comprising officers of different law enforcement agencies of several countries who are responsible for operative investigation of criminal cases that are characterized by great complexity and a high volume of procedural and other types of work. Having analyzed the criminal procedure legislation of the Commonwealth of Independent States (the CIS) countries, the statistical data regarding the criminal situation in the Russian Federation and the CIS countries, and the law enforcement practice of collegial crime investigation, the author concludes that there is a real need for the establishment of such groups but, at the same time, draws attention to the fact that, while developing the procedural clauses under which preliminary investigation could be conducted by cooperative interstate groups, it is necessary to take into consideration the existing experience of creating such units in the law enforcement agencies of Western countries as, according to the analysis of theoretical clauses and investigative practice, the work of such units is characterized by high effectiveness and produces good results. In conclusion, the author presents a concept for establishing the possible directions of international cooperation of the Russian Federation and the CIS countries in the sphere of criminal proceedings, which is expressed through the development of criminal procedure norms providing for the opportunity to create cooperative interstate investigative groups.

Illicit Trafficking of Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic or Potent Substances with the Use of Distance Communication Technologies: New Criminal Ways

Illicit trafficking of narcotic drugs traditionally holds a special place among criminal threats due to the scale of its negative social impact. In the conditions of global informatization, the mechanism of drug trade is transitioning to an active use of contactless means of committing crimes. Information and telecommunication technologies allow offenders to design increasingly sophisticated criminal schemes of drug trafficking whose matrix is made up of deliberate and thoroughly planned actions. The study reported in this article considered typical methods of contactless drug trade through mobile communication tools - pre-order and instant online offer. The author examined changes in the typology of the members of modern organized drug trade criminal groups involved in contactless drug delivery using information and telecommunication technologies. A typical structure of a criminal «store» is presented. According to the author, the proposed research approach to understanding the mechanism of illicit drug trade, which is based on the use of distance communication devices and information-telecommunication technologies, should render more focused the work of law enforcement aimed at searching, identifying and preserving proof on the stages of creating such organized criminal groups, coordinating the actions of their structural elements, forms of finding and recruiting their new members, and a comprehensive system of drug trades IT support.

Problem wytyczenia konstytutywnych cech zorganizowanej grupy przestępczej. Glosa do wyroku Sądu Apelacyjnego w Białymstoku z dnia 3 października 2018 r. (II AKa 68/18)

The commentary refers to the problem of elements the presence of which is necessary to assume that a given group of people constitutes an organized group in the meaning of Article 158 of the Polish Criminal Code. The author shares the opinion presented by the Court of Appeal in Bialystok that the constitutive features of an organized criminal group do not include the mechanisms of enforcing obedience, the existence of leadership or the presence of a reward/punishment system for the members of the group. The commentary points to the minimal elements necessary to establish the existence of an organized criminal group and presents in-depth arguments in favor of the commented thesis. The commentary emphasizes also to the gradual evolution of the views referring to the necessary characteristic elements of organized criminal groups in the light of Article 258 of the Polish Criminal Code.

Forensic characteristics of the creation and distribution of content containing child pornography using information and telecommunications systems or technologies

The article is devoted to the forensic characteristics of the creation and distribution of content containing child pornography using information and telecommunication systems or technologies. This type of criminal offenses is classified as complex methods. The components of criminal technology are: obtaining access to child pornography, its acquisition, storage, importation, transportation or other movement, production, sale and distribution (Article 301-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine); rape (Article 152 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine); committing acts of a sexual nature with a person who has not reached the age of sixteen (Article 155 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine); sexual violence (Article 153 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine); corruption of minors (Article 156 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine); human trafficking (Article 149 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
 Girls aged 9 to 13 were most often involved in the creation of sexual content. Criminals take advantage of the vulnerable state of children, caused by the fact that they have not yet formed sexual identification, hierarchy of motives, moral consciousness and self-awareness. In more than 90% of cases, the investigated crimes were committed with the participation of persons close to the child. Such criminal offenses are committed for sexual and selfish motives. Consumers of pornographic content have a sexual motive. The creation and distribution of content containing child pornography using information and telecommunication systems or technologies is most often committed by organized criminal groups for selfish motives, which have a clear hierarchical structure: the organizer; recruiters; directors; performers; distributors of pornographic content.
 Criminal technologies include two groups of offenses: 1) actions related to violence against a child; 2) actions related to the creation and distribution of pornographic content using information and telecommunication systems or technologies.
 The peculiarity of the circumstances of the commission of the investigated group of criminal offenses is that the place of sexual violence (that is, the creation of content containing child pornography) has a specific (physical) address, and the distribution of such content is carried out using information and telecommunication systems or technologies.
 Criminal technologies include two groups of offenses: 1) actions related to violence against a child; 2) actions related to the creation and distribution of pornographic content using information and telecommunication systems or technologies.
 The peculiarity of the circumstances of the commission of the investigated group of criminal offenses is that the place of sexual violence (that is, the creation of content containing child pornography) has a specific (physical) address, and the distribution of such content is carried out using information and telecommunication systems or technologies.

Crime wars: Operational perspectives on criminal armed groups in Mexico and Brazil

AbstractViolent conflicts involving non-State armed groups challenge conventional perceptions of war and armed conflict. Criminal enterprises (transnational organized criminal groups including gangs and cartels) are involved in violent competition for both profit and territorial control in many parts of the world. This paper examines the situation in Mexico and Brazil as case studies to assess the legal challenges to criminal armed violence when criminal groups battle among themselves and the State. The paper focuses on the operational challenges and considerations facing police, military, and security forces and justice institutions to illuminate the legal challenges.