Organized Crime - A Systematic Way of Perpetrating
Offenses
Organized
crime refers to
groups of individuals who have banded together to commit unlawful acts
and make
a profit in the process. In the United States, being part of the mob is
called
racketeering and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
regulates activities related to it. Organized crime is usually composed
of
individuals from
the same ethnic background banding together, such as Italians, Irish,
Japanese
and Russian.
The
US Organized Crime Control Act of 1970
defines organized crime as any unlawful activity committed by a highly
organized and disciplined association. Criminal organizations are run
by
criminals usually for monetary gain
purposes.
Mafia is one of
the most well-known
criminal organizations operating for monetary profit. At times, gangs can also become organized to form
a criminal organization. Such criminal sets are also referred to as a mob. Nevertheless, organized crime can
also
be politically-motivated such as
terrorist groups and organizations.
In
the United
States,
participating in organized crime is called racketeering
– a federal crime that is prosecuted under the Racketeer
Influence and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).
Regardless
of the purpose, organized crime always has certain basic
qualities or elements such as:
- Durability
over Time
- Hierarchical
Structure
- Capital
Accumulation
- Reinvestment
- Diversified
Interest
- Access to
Political Protection
- Use of
Violence to Protect the Group’s Interests
Another
common trait of many organized crimes is that they often
have a legal front such as building construction, legal
gambling business, trash hauling,
or any
business that can at times cover illegal
activities like drug and human trafficking, prostitution,
extortion,
insider trading, and counterfeiting among others.
One
reason why organized crime endures for extended periods of time is that
the
criminal groups obtain a level of
support from the society in which it operates. It is not
uncommon for respected members of the society
to be corrupted
by criminal organizations either by bribery, threat, or blackmail.
Police and
judicial officers as
well as legislators
are often the target for control of criminal organizations. Criminal
organizations also often establish a symbiotic relationship with
legitimate
businesses.
Members
of criminal organizations communicate by word of mouth, by phone, or
via
internet means. Unlike legitimate organizations that involve a lot of
paperwork
which is not present in organized crime, criminal organizations are
capable of
reorganizing and evolving easily should the situation call for it.
Organized
Crime – Crossing Borders
Criminal
organizations can become really big and even operate internationally
which
makes it extremely difficult to abolish
them.
Hence,
the United Nations considers
organized
crime as among the major threats to human security. Organized crime
also
impedes economic, political, social, and cultural progress and
development of
the countries where they operate.
Organized
crime on a grander and transnational
scale can also be greatly multi-faceted facilitating and
aggravating major international concerns
such as
drug and firearm trafficking, human trafficking, money laundering,
smuggling
etc.
Organized
crime also benefited from globalization
keeping in pace with the expansion of international trade by expanding
their
operations as well. In case of drug trafficking, a ready customer who
is based
inside an area or country is usually present to receive the goods and
to
finance the operations.
With
the growth of internet technology,
many
criminal organizations are now also operating
online. Several internet crimes can be attributed to
organized crime
including identity theft and online extortion.
Thus,
the
internet makes it even easier
for organized
crime to cross borders and more difficult for law enforcement officials
to
bring them to justice since these only operate locally.
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