Organized crime and criminal networks Paper.
The existence of crimes and vices within the contemporary has largely contributed to the
crippling of national and regional state systems across the globe. The advancements made in
technology and communication have even worsened this situation such that an offence can be executed through a remote location. Organized crime and criminal networks Paper. The efforts of surveillance and intelligence techniques have
been thwarted since criminals and culprits are getting smarter with each passing day. This
explains why organized crime has gained so much recognition in the recent past with many
wrongdoings having escalated from mere robberies to daylight frauds. The reason why most
people choose to indulge in this delinquent acts can be explained through various social science
theories that analyze behavior, psychological function as well as cognitive abilities. Organized crime and criminal networks Paper.This paper is an essay that delves into the issue of organized crime and criminal networks and the role of
social science theories in their understanding.
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Task for the Essay: Please select one topic and write an essay that explains how social science
theories provide insight and understanding these policy case studies.
Body of the Essay
i) Section A
a) Explanation of organized crime and criminal networks
The quality of life led by people within the modern society is threatened by unforeseen
external forces and factors such as terrorism, bombings, toxins and other forms of catastrophes.
Organized crime is a new addition is this list where a group of individuals come together to
execute some of the smartest offences in the planet (Atkinson, 2016). This form of wrongdoings are known to occur at the local, regional, national or even transnational level where gangs and
masterminds lead their members into engaging in contraband and illegal activities that defraud
people millions of money. Organized crime and criminal networks Paper.
The rise in popularity of organized crime emanates from the fact that the globe has
shrunk into a small village where people can easily interact on a daily basis, communicate and
even travel with so much ease (Vaccaro and Palazzo, 2015). These developments are seen as
opportunities by the criminal organizations that use them to either plan terrorism activities,
cyber-attacks, fraud and other forms of white collar crimes. The network of these gangsters is
quite relevant to crime as each of them has an identity that marks their territory of operation and
their target zones (Wolf, 2012). This is why crimes that are structured and organized are known
to be disciplined in the sense that they follow a given protocol so that their mission can be
fulfilled.
There is a wide array of crimes that makes it in the list of organized acts of breaking the
law (Woodiwiss, 2015). This includes the victimization where the suspects involved make well
laid out plans to hijack a given consignment or extort a legitimate entrepreneur. In other
occasions, the criminal gangs may plan to rob their victims at the initial stages where they force
them to surrender their money even before the goods are procured (Kleemans et al, 2012).
Likewise, fraud is another form of organized crime where people in the formal sector that work
official jobs engage in atrocities that involve insider trading, stock theft or even stealing of
insurance claims. These vices cannot be executed by one person since they are very tasking and
sensitive in nature (Lavorgna et al, 2013).
Hence, most people tend to form their own gangs, groups or sects that task themselves
with the duty of robbing people of their hard earned money. This list is quite extensive and goes all the way to the process of sharking loans at exorbitant interest rates, blackmail, forging
documents and even trafficking of body organs (Paraschiv, 2013). The majority of developing
nations such as Australia, Canada and America are grappling with the losses that comes with this
category of crime. The shortfall in revenue that some of these states record can amount to over
ten billion dollars which can easily cripple a rising economy.
The federal government of a country such as Australia has constantly campaigned for
changes in the system such that they can deal harshly with the perpetrators (Siegel, 2014).
The common denominators with organized crimes is that their subsequent networks consist of
more than three people who are supposed to oversee different functions. In addition, this people
are chosen with a lot of skill and precision to ensure that they can keep the secrets of the gang.
The driving force behind the participation in any act of crime is to benefit directly from the
monetary or material gains that comes from the various illegitimate activities.
The mutual threat that virtually all countries face when it comes to organized crime is the
fact that technology is both a hindrance and stepping stone when it comes to mitigating and
curbing the vice (Woodiwiss, 2015). Further, the high level of experience and knowledge that
most criminals possess is so impressive such that most of them have avoided being arrested for
years and decades. This is especially true if one focuses on how criminal networks have
continued to mushroom over the years and even gain worldwide recognition (Kleemans et al,
2012).
Terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda and Al Shabab together with various drug syndicates
are presently enjoying headline attention due to the prowess that they exhibit in steering these
crimes and avoiding the long arm of the law. One of the well-known gangs is the Yakuza in
Japan that has even threatened and thwarted the ruling government. This group is has managed to orchestrate and effect all of its undertakings because of the manner in which it is highly orderly
and hierarchical in nature (Lavorgna et al, 2013). This allows the members of this network to
own a number of industries, businesses and even companies that are forced to pay the group or
else risk facing their wrath. The same case is true for the Sinaloa gang that is actually the leading
drug cartel in Mexico and across the world.
This group is held responsible for the transit of drugs and banned substances across
borders from South America to any destination of choice in the world (Paraschiv, 2013).
In the event that one of the gang leaders is arrested, the group bounces back to operation and
manages to remain in power. There are a number of social science theories that have been
postulated to explain the existence of organized crime and the subsequent formation of criminal
networks (Paraschiv, 2013). The following part of this essay explores the issue of social science
theories in relation to this sensitive topic.
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ii) Section B
b) Relationship between social science theories and organized crime
The theory of deviance is one of the most reliable concepts that provides a clear cut
explanation of the existence of crime in society. This theory states that people tend to become
deviant when they want to violate the social norms, beliefs and traditions with the aim of getting
disapproved by the other people in their community (Lavorgna et al, 2013). The criminal form of
deviance is one that relates to sociology and it deals with all types and sorts of prohibited
activities such as cyber-attacks, terrorism, kidnapping and even embezzlement of funds. The
deviance theory has a direct connection to organized crime as it tries to explain why some people
choose to indulge in such acts (Paraschiv, 2013). The facts of this philosophy state that there are people that desire to get recognition in all
the wrong ways. Therefore, they will engage in all sorts and types of wayward and unthinkable
things so that in the long run, they can be noticed (Woodiwiss, 2015). Organized crime and criminal networks Paper. Alternatively, some other
people are known to take part in criminal behavior since they are trying to compensate for
something that did not happen in their past. For instance, adults that had a rough child upbringing
tend to engage in violent crimes because this is what they experienced while growing up
(Vaccaro and Palazzo, 2015).
Similarly, children that grew under impoverished conditions end up developing the desire
to join an illegal gang as long as they can be assured that they can get a steady and constant
supply of money. Through this approach, the gang members are able to avoid becoming poor in
their adult life and they can make up for lost times with stealing or defrauding other people of
their wealth. In this case, organized crimes and their networks exist in society because a number
of people opt to engage in errant behavior so as to gain the approval of the people in the
immediate communities (Wolf, 2012). In other cases, the same people chose to become deviant
completely such that they do not care about what consequence befalls them. The increasing
complexities in technology and communications deserve to be handled with serious competence
if a solution to organized crime is to be obtained. Organized crime and criminal networks Paper.
Conclusion
The twenty first century is grappling with a myriad of challenges that continue to place
the lives of most human beings in extreme jeopardy. Organized crime and criminal networks is
one of the enormous problems of modern times that is ripping of economies of money and
revenue. The fact that a crime can be executed from one country and affect people in a different state serves to show the complexity of this category of wrongdoings. The state government and
ruling regime in every country should tighten its operations if this vice it to be mitigated.
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References
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