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Article
Publication date: 8 February 2016

Emmanuel K. Bunei, Gerard McElwee and Robert Smith

The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of the changing practices of cattle rustling in Kenya from a relatively small isolated and opportunistic activity to a much…

1324

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of the changing practices of cattle rustling in Kenya from a relatively small isolated and opportunistic activity to a much more planned and systematic entrepreneurial business involving collusion and corruption.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper provides a conceptual approach using key literature and documentary evidence to show how, in the northern part of Kenya, cattle rustling is common occurrence with criminals taking advantage of remote rural environments with minimal surveillance and consequently less opportunity of being stopped and searched by police.

Findings

Results evidence significant differences in how rustling is perceived and valorized. Rustling in Kenya is now an entrepreneurial crime with the involvement of rural organized criminal gangs (ROCGs), who are operating in food supply chains throughout Kenya and the African continent.

Practical/implications

This paper suggests that a more nuanced understanding of the entrepreneurial nature of some illegal practices in a rural Kenya is necessary and how it requires multi-agency investigation.

Originality/value

The paper is unique in that it considers how cattle rustling is becoming a more entrepreneurial crime than previously. Little prior work on this subject exists in Kenya. The paper utilizes the framework of Smith and McElwee (2013) on illegal enterprise to frame cattle rustling as an entrepreneurial crime.

Details

Society and Business Review, vol. 11 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5680

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 March 2016

Robert Smith

In small-business-communities trust is important inter/intra family particularly in relation to familial dynamics. Seldom is mistrust or distrust examined in an academic context…

Abstract

Purpose

In small-business-communities trust is important inter/intra family particularly in relation to familial dynamics. Seldom is mistrust or distrust examined in an academic context. In business families “Black-Sheep” often rebel against familial expectations by engaging in criminal activity. This is important because entrepreneurs are eulogised by society and as an institution, family business is venerated. The very idea that small business owners would knowingly engage in crime is anathema. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

Using retrospective ethnography and immersion techniques this quasi-longitudinal study of (dis)organized crime in a small-business-community (SBC) starts the bridging process.

Findings

There is an assumption that business crime is best accommodated under the rubric of white-collar-criminality typically regarded as an excusable middle-class crime compared to organized working-class crime. By focusing on the black-sheep of business families collectively this work illustrates how there may be a stronger link between organized-crime-groups and the local-business-community than previously assumed because a small minority of businessmen engage in the commission of ordinary crime by choice.

Research/limitations/implications

The methodology used is a limitation as is replicating it in other small-business-communities.

Practical/implications

This study provides an alternative heuristic through which to understand the application black-sheep-thesis in business settings. The knowledge developed has practical implications for the investigation of crime in such communities and for researchers in the field.

Social/implications

This study extends knowledge of white-collar-criminality within the business domain.

Originality/value

This is an original and novel study which extends our knowledge and understanding of trust based issues in business settings and the SBC.

Details

International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, vol. 22 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2554

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 March 2020

Nicholas Gilmour

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the incentivised steps criminals take to launder cash while avoiding government’s anti-money laundering (AML) measures.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the incentivised steps criminals take to launder cash while avoiding government’s anti-money laundering (AML) measures.

Design/methodology/approach

To illustrate how and when technology is most prominent in the money laundering process, this paper analyses the criminal’s methodological approach to “technology-enhanced money laundering” by examining several high-level examples. To strengthen the theoretical assessment and the overall validity of the findings, the author incorporates details from their own research and professional experience to maximise comprehension of the methodological process that organised criminals and money launderers alike look to undertake when placing illicitly derived cash in the money laundering cycle.

Findings

The AML model of “placement, layering and integration” is synonymous with presenting the process of money laundering – in the most basic or generic forms. This paper identifies that the placement stage is a primary stage through which technology is exploited to assist in the entire laundering process.

Practical implications

Using money laundering case studies, this paper identifies that existing AML/countering terrorism financing international perceptions/practices and typological studies are not adequate for presenting an accurate assessment of the process used to undertake money laundering.

Originality/value

This paper provides an examination of the practicalities behind the prevention of money laundering from a compliance and investigative perspective. The paper is of interest to those involved in policy, compliance and investigations associated with money laundering.

Details

Journal of Money Laundering Control, vol. 23 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1368-5201

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2006

Frank J. Marine

The purpose of this paper is to examine the development and nature of organized crime in the USA over the past 50 years, emphasizing organized crime's corruption and victimization…

2945

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the development and nature of organized crime in the USA over the past 50 years, emphasizing organized crime's corruption and victimization of legitimate businesses and describing law enforcement's efforts to combat organized crime through specific case studies.

Design/methodology/approach

First, the paper analyzes the control over and corruption of legitimate businesses in the USA by the La Cosa Nostra (“LCN,” or the American Mafia), including the following industries: Las Vegas gaming; moving and storage; garment; waste – hauling; and, construction, and the following unions: the International Brotherhood of Teamsters; Laborers International Union of North America; and, the International Longshoreman's Association. The paper also describes law enforcement's successful efforts to combat such corruption through the use of criminal and civil racketeering laws and specific prosecutions. The paper then discusses the emergence in the mid‐1980s of non‐traditional organized crime groups in the USA, including various Asian ethnic groups and large‐scale human trafficking organizations that impact Europe and Asia as well as the USA.

Findings

The non‐traditional criminal groups not only prey on the legitimate businesses in ethnic Asian communities in the USA, but they also engage in complex crimes, alien smuggling, drug trafficking, credit‐card frauds, money laundering, and other financial crimes. There has emerged a new era for organized crime that began in the 1990s with the fall of the former Soviet Union and the emergence of transnational organized crime groups emanating from the nations comprising the former Soviet Bloc. These organized crime groups engage in a wide variety of economic crimes including extortion, fraud, illicit appropriation of natural resources, and public corruption. Such extensive corruption threatens the stability of some of these emerging nations.

Originality/value

This paper will be valuable to law enforcement offices and policy makers to assist them to understand the scope and nature of organized crime's adverse effects upon businesses and economic interests and to develop tools to combat such criminal activities.

Details

Journal of Financial Crime, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-0790

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 18 November 2020

Sasha Jesperson

Slowly, and driven by a growing recognition of the impact of organised crime on developing countries, as well as the allure developing countries represent to criminal groups…

Abstract

Slowly, and driven by a growing recognition of the impact of organised crime on developing countries, as well as the allure developing countries represent to criminal groups, development agencies have begun to engage with the problem of criminality. As a new actor in this area though, the linkage between development actors and other stakeholders – particularly those at the security end of the spectrum – is mired by a series of tensions. The explicit connection between crime and development in the Sustainable Development Goals increases the incentive, and urgency, for development actors to work through these tensions. However, the response often replicates the focus of security actors, such as building the capacity of law enforcement agencies to arrest criminals and seize illicit goods. This approach neglects the specific value that development offers in the response to organised crime. This chapter will map out the tensions that exist between security and development actors, and their impact on the response to organised crime. It will then consider what development can contribute to the response, drawing on examples from Libya and Mexico.

Details

The Emerald Handbook of Crime, Justice and Sustainable Development
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78769-355-5

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 January 2008

Luiz de Andrade Filho

This essay aims to examine the relationship between socio‐economic forces and drug‐related organised crime in Brazil. It focuses on both judicial structures and social service…

1384

Abstract

Purpose

This essay aims to examine the relationship between socio‐economic forces and drug‐related organised crime in Brazil. It focuses on both judicial structures and social service delivery to illustrate how they impact the shaping of criminal networks – a recurrent situation in many Latin American countries.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing from previous research on drug trafficking conducted for Amazonian states and the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, this paper takes the viewpoint put forward by key development literature along with well established works on crime and corruption in order to conclude on interactions of important political, social and economic factors with crime.

Findings

It finds that some transformations introduced during the 1980s are a crucial element to understand the building up of criminal organisations. Furthermore, the absence of an effective judicial system, the lack of social service delivery by the government and cultural factors are central elements to take into account when seeking to address drug‐related crime.

Practical implications

A balance between positive and negative measures to combat organised crime and a better understanding of the institutional environment should be sought while designing public policies to address crime in Brazil. Moreover, further research is needed in order to gather a greater amount of reliable data, as well as an accurate appraisal of different strategies to prevent organised crime to broaden its incidence in the country.

Originality/value

The paper is a good starting point for those aiming to comprehend how organised crime operates in Brazil (and possibly in some Latin American countries).

Details

Journal of Financial Crime, vol. 15 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-0790

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 May 2009

Peter A. Sproat

Politicians justified the introduction of the illiberal and liberal parts of the UK's anti‐money laundering and asset recovery regime by reference to the extra‐ordinary threat…

2360

Abstract

Purpose

Politicians justified the introduction of the illiberal and liberal parts of the UK's anti‐money laundering and asset recovery regime by reference to the extra‐ordinary threat posed by organised crime. This paper attempts to evaluate the extent to which the financial measures contained in the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) 2002 and the Serious and Organised Crime and Policing Act 2005 are actually used against this threat.

Design/methodology/approach

The objective is achieved by reference to four distinct datasets found on the use of these measures. The first consists of the regular, usually monthly, bulletins on the Proceeds of Crime produced by the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA). The second – which reveals the length of sentences given to those convicted of money laundering offences under the POCA – was gathered from the Financial Action Task Force, the Home Office and Justice Office in Scotland. The third consists of the value of the cases which had been, and which were being, dealt with by the ARA at the time the National Audit Office produced it's report on the institution. The fourth is the number of financial reporting orders which have been imposed upon criminals, follows the discovery of an earlier version whilst examining parliamentary records.

Findings

The triangulated results suggest that the POCA powers – originally used by use against organised crime – were used against this alleged threat only on a small minority and number of occasions.

Research limitations/implications

This infrequent use raises major questions of either the ability of the policing agencies including the Serious and Organised Crime Agency to take on organised crime and/or the credibility of those who exaggerated a threat of organised crime to justify the (often illiberal) powers.

Originality/value

This paper questions whether the POCA will achieve one of its original aims. It will interest politicians and practitioners concerned with the combating of organised crime and/or anti‐money laundering and asset recovery as well as criminologists and those interested in civil liberties.

Details

Journal of Money Laundering Control, vol. 12 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1368-5201

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 February 2024

Robert Smith and Gerard McElwee

This study builds on the extant research of the authors on illegal rural enterprise (IRE). However, instead of taking a single or micro case approach within specific sections of…

Abstract

Purpose

This study builds on the extant research of the authors on illegal rural enterprise (IRE). However, instead of taking a single or micro case approach within specific sections of the farming and food industries we examine the concept holistically from a macro case perspective. Many IRE crimes simply could not be committed without insider knowledge and complicity, making it essential to appreciate this when researching or investigating such crimes.

Design/methodology/approach

Using data from published studies, we introduce the theoretical concept of “Shadow infrastructure” to analyse and explain the prevalence and endurance of such criminal enterprises. Using a multiple case approach, we examine data across the cases to provide an analysis of several industry wide crimes—the illicit halal meat trade; the theft of sheep; the theft of tractors and plant; and the supply of illicit veterinary medicines.

Findings

We examine IRE crimes across various sectors to identify commonalities in practice and in relation to business models drawing from a multidisciplinary literature spanning business and criminology. Such enterprises can be are inter-linked. We also provide suggestions on investigating such structures.

Practical implications

We identify academic and practical implications in relation to the investigation of IRE crime and from an academic perspective in relation to researching the phenomenon.

Originality/value

This study combines data from numerous individual studies from a macro perspective to provide practical solutions to a multifaceted problem.

Details

Policing: An International Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1363-951X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 May 2017

Alexandra Hall and Georgios A. Antonopoulos

This paper aims to offer detailed preliminary data and analysis that focuses specifically on the structures and financial aspects of the UK cocaine market.

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to offer detailed preliminary data and analysis that focuses specifically on the structures and financial aspects of the UK cocaine market.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is based on in-depth interviews with – among others – four active criminal entrepreneurs involved in powder cocaine supply in the UK. Furthermore, along with a review of relevant literature and open sources, in-depth interviews were undertaken with a range of experts with knowledge of the cocaine market. These experts include law enforcement agents and independent academics/researchers who have researched the cocaine market in the UK and internationally.

Findings

The cocaine market is a fragmented business dependent on networks of individual entrepreneurs and groups. At the core of collaborations often lie family, ethnic or kinship relationships and relationships forged within legal businesses and in prison. Capital investment practices in this market are flexible, “messy” and mutating, and money comes from a range of different sources. Credit is an integral feature of the cocaine business in the UK. The financial management of the cocaine trade is a result of (and reflects) a number of factors, such as the fragmented and decentralised nature of the trade.

Originality/value

Empirical research into financial aspects of organised crime manifestations is important for the assumptions that are part of public debate to be tested. In addition, understanding the broader range of financial aspects of organised crime is an important component of the process of crimes for gain and can contribute to both better investigation and better prevention.

Details

Journal of Financial Crime, vol. 24 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-0790

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 25 March 2021

Robert Smith

Having considered models and frameworks which assist in the implementation of entrepreneurial policing, it is now helpful to consider complex scenarios where entrepreneurial…

Abstract

Having considered models and frameworks which assist in the implementation of entrepreneurial policing, it is now helpful to consider complex scenarios where entrepreneurial innovations would help change policing practices. Policing systems and practices are based on the knowledge gained from years of practice and on what works. This entails following procedures and often general orders which act as instructions on ‘how to do’ particular tasks. Indeed, the on-the-job training which officers receive reinforce the rigidity of thinking and inflexibility of thought and action often associated with police practices. Following the rules and being seen to follow them are important. The traditional ‘crime fighting model of policing’ is one such tried and tested system. However, what do officers do when they face a new phenomenon, or other complex scenario where their standard operational procedures do not work or produce the expected results. They must of necessity innovate, improvise, and make changes. In Section 6.1 the pernicious scenarios of the Albanian Mafia in the UK is discussed, and ideas presented on how to implement a more entrepreneurial approach which may help disrupt of interdict such Mafia gangs. In Section 6.2, a contemporary US problem namely that of so-called ‘Police Gangs’ which appear to operate as neo-criminal fraternities is considered. Both of these complex scenarios are ongoing situations which will require a more entrepreneurial multiagency approach in the future to bring them under control. In Section 6.3, two examples from the authors own policing career which are examples of the power and utility of ‘intrapreneurial policing’ practices which were implemented to bring about change in local policing scenarios are considered. Finally, in Section 6.4, the take-away points are discussed.

Details

Entrepreneurship in Policing and Criminal Contexts
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80071-056-6

Keywords

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