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Organized Crime

Curtis J. Milhaupt and Mark D. West

in Economic Organizations and Corporate Governance in Japan

Examines the problem of organized crime. Shows how Japan's institutional environment for economic activity—specifically gaps between legal rights ‘on the books’ and the state's ability to enforce ... More

Examines the problem of organized crime. Shows how Japan's institutional environment for economic activity—specifically gaps between legal rights ‘on the books’ and the state's ability to enforce those rights in practice—have provided incentives for entrepreneurship on the dark side of society. Japanese organized crime syndicates, like other actors in the economy, respond to the rules of the game.Less

Bōtaihō: Organised Crime Countermeasures—Japanese Style

Peter B. E. Hill

in The Japanese Mafia: Yakuza, Law, and the State

Deals with the response of the state to organized crime. During the early 1990s a new anti‐yakuza law was introduced. Having discussed the reasons for this law's introduction, this law is described ... More

Deals with the response of the state to organized crime. During the early 1990s a new anti‐yakuza law was introduced. Having discussed the reasons for this law's introduction, this law is described and analysed with reference to American and European anti‐organized crime laws (both of which were influential in the internal policy debate).Less

Mafias and the State

Peter B. E. Hill

in The Japanese Mafia: Yakuza, Law, and the State

Drawing on the work of Gambetta, Schelling, and other scholars of mafias and organized crime, this chapter establishes the theoretical framework for the remainder of the book. It is argued that the ... More

Drawing on the work of Gambetta, Schelling, and other scholars of mafias and organized crime, this chapter establishes the theoretical framework for the remainder of the book. It is argued that the central characteristic of mafias is the provision of private protection. Such protection is not necessarily bogus (extortionate) and there are a number of potential consumers of this service. The chapter explores the conditions in which the market for private protection might arise, the consumers and suppliers of this commodity, and the relationship between mafias and the state.Less

Yakuza, Law and the State

Peter B. E. Hill

in The Japanese Mafia: Yakuza, Law, and the State

The concluding chapter of this book draws these chapters together and sets them in the broader context of the state's provision of protection in Japan. The preference of the Japanese authorities for ... More

The concluding chapter of this book draws these chapters together and sets them in the broader context of the state's provision of protection in Japan. The preference of the Japanese authorities for social control processes over formal mechanisms of enforcement and dispute resolution has created a conducive environment for private protection markets. Yakuza provision of such protection has been one consequence. Current developments in the set Japan's social, legal, economic, and political relations suggest, however, that this market is under threat.Less

Conclusions

Letizia Paoli

in Mafia Brotherhoods: Organized Crime, Italian Style

This book has shown that Cosa Nostra and the 'Ndrangheta are secret and multifunctional brotherhoods each composed of about a hundred units. Though these are usually called families by their members, ... More

This book has shown that Cosa Nostra and the 'Ndrangheta are secret and multifunctional brotherhoods each composed of about a hundred units. Though these are usually called families by their members, they are clearly distinct from the latter's blood families. They rely instead on bonds of artificial kinship created through the ceremony of initiation of new members. Exploiting secrecy and violence, the families of Cosa Nostra and the 'Ndrangheta have traditionally employed the strength of mafia bonds to pursue a plurality of goals and to carry out numerous different functions, so much so that it is impossible to identify any one who is exclusive. The cosche are neither economic enterprises aiming at the maximization of profits nor an industry for private protection. Cosa Nostra and the 'Ndrangheta cannot be considered a universally valid ideal type of organized crime if it is understood as the provision of illegal goods and services.Less

Introduction

Federico Varese

in Mafias on the Move: How Organized Crime Conquers New Territories

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the book's key themes. The book examines mafias' ability to transplant in new and distant territories. Conventional wisdom suggests that organized ... More

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the book's key themes. The book examines mafias' ability to transplant in new and distant territories. Conventional wisdom suggests that organized crime migrates easily due to the spread of globalization and population migration, and criminal multinational corporations are increasingly unattached to a specific territory. According to Louise Shelley, the director of the Transnational Crime Institute in Washington, DC, “international organized crime has globalized its activities for the same reasons as legitimate multinational corporations.” Many authors argue that the notions of territorial entrenchment and control are becoming obsolete for a “Global Crime Inc.” that “transcends the sovereignty that organizes the modern state system.” The “transnational organized crime consensus” is influential among policymakers.Less

Economic Reconstruction and Development

Richard Caplan

in International Governance of War-Torn Territories: Rule and Reconstruction

Economic development is a basic requirement for the long-term viability of internationally administered territories. Discusses what is often a triple challenge for transitional administrators: ... More

Economic development is a basic requirement for the long-term viability of internationally administered territories. Discusses what is often a triple challenge for transitional administrators: physical reconstruction, structural transformation, and economic development, each with its own conceptual framework and approach. Overcoming this triple challenge requires a degree of co-ordination among external parties that can be difficult to achieve because of the inherent autonomy of the key actors involved: donor states, regional and international aid agencies, and development banks. A further difficulty arises when the strategic aims of the external actors are not shared by the local parties. Organized crime, corruption, and black- and grey-market activities can also pose serious threats to economic recovery.Less

The Russian Mafia in Rome and Budapest

Federico Varese

in Mafias on the Move: How Organized Crime Conquers New Territories

The “Solntsevo fraternity” (Solntsevskaya bratva) is the mightiest organized crime group to emerge from the wreckage of the Soviet Union. Estimates of the size of the brotherhood (possibly ... More

The “Solntsevo fraternity” (Solntsevskaya bratva) is the mightiest organized crime group to emerge from the wreckage of the Soviet Union. Estimates of the size of the brotherhood (possibly exaggerated) range from five to nine thousand members. The group comprises no fewer than ten semiautonomous brigades (brigady), which operate under the umbrella name of Solntsevskaya. The Russian police claim that it controls various banks along with about a hundred small and medium-size enterprises. Although little is known of the inner workings of the group, former members have claimed that the organization is governed by a council of twelve individuals, who meet regularly in different parts of the world, often disguising their meetings as festive occasions. This chapter examines efforts by the Solntsevskaya to create subsidiaries in Rome and Budapest.Less

Mafia Transplantation

Federico Varese

in Mafias on the Move: How Organized Crime Conquers New Territories

This chapter discusses the factors that determine the success of mafia transplantation. It first sets out several theoretical insights into why mafias find it difficult to become entrenched in ... More

This chapter discusses the factors that determine the success of mafia transplantation. It first sets out several theoretical insights into why mafias find it difficult to become entrenched in foreign countries. It then discusses the conditions under which mafiosi succeed in become entrenched once they find themselves in the new territory. For some authors, the level of generalized trust (trust in others whom we do not know) in the new land is an important variable that could explain the entrenchment of mafias. The presence of a genuine demand for criminal protection, the core activity of mafias, also leads to long-term transplantation.Less

Mafia Origins, Transplantation, and the Paradoxes of Democracy

Federico Varese

in Mafias on the Move: How Organized Crime Conquers New Territories

This chapter outlines a general perspective of mafia emergence and transplantation, and offers some considerations on the relation between democracy and mafias. Recent studies have shown that mafias ... More

This chapter outlines a general perspective of mafia emergence and transplantation, and offers some considerations on the relation between democracy and mafias. Recent studies have shown that mafias emerge in societies that are undergoing a sudden and late transition to the market economy, lack a legal structure that reliably protects property rights or settles business disputes, and have a supply of people trained in violence who become unemployed at this specific juncture. However, not all mafias have developed during times of market transition. Mafias may well emerge within functioning market economies, and for reasons other than to ensure the protection of property rights. The best way to fight the presence of a mafia is to drain the demand for its services. It is not enough to reform the public administration or liberalize markets, or let booms go unchecked. Liberalization should be accompanied by effective measures aimed at preventing the formation of cartels in local markets and easing the effect of liberalization on the local workforce to avoid social tension.Less

Shinogi—Sources of Income

Peter B. E. Hill

in The Japanese Mafia: Yakuza, Law, and the State

Gives a comprehensive overview of the main sources of income of these groups during the late 1980s.

The ˋNdrangheta in Piedmont and Veneto

Federico Varese

in Mafias on the Move: How Organized Crime Conquers New Territories

This chapter focuses on the 'Ndrangheta, a loose confederation of mafia families, most of which (eighty-six) operate in the province of Reggio Calabria in southern Calabria. This mafia has ... More

This chapter focuses on the 'Ndrangheta, a loose confederation of mafia families, most of which (eighty-six) operate in the province of Reggio Calabria in southern Calabria. This mafia has systematically forced local entrepreneurs to pay protection money, corrupted officials, and penetrated politics. Politicians have been threatened, wounded, and killed, while bosses have successfully stood in local elections. In the 1990s, the Italian government disbanded eighteen city councils due to the 'Ndrangheta's ability to pervert local electoral processes. In 2007, killers from San Luca, this mafia's stronghold, murdered six people outside an Italian restaurant in Duisburg, in northwestern Germany, bringing the ruthless nature and international reach of the organization home to the European public.Less

Lessons from the Past: Sicilian Mafiosi in New York City and Rosario, circa 1880–1940

Federico Varese

in Mafias on the Move: How Organized Crime Conquers New Territories

From the mid-nineteenth century, many Sicilians, including members of the mafia, were on the move. After sketching the contours of the mafia in Sicily in the nineteenth century, this chapter outlines ... More

From the mid-nineteenth century, many Sicilians, including members of the mafia, were on the move. After sketching the contours of the mafia in Sicily in the nineteenth century, this chapter outlines the parallel history of Italian migration and mafia activities in New York City and Rosario, Argentina, and offers an analytic account of the diverging outcomes. Only in the North American city did a mafia that resembled the Sicilian one emerge. The Prohibition provided an enormous boost to both the personnel and power of Italian organized crime. The risk of punishment was low, the gains to be made were enormous, and there was no social stigma attached to this trade.Less

The Future of the Mafias? Foreign Triads in China

Federico Varese

in Mafias on the Move: How Organized Crime Conquers New Territories

This chapter explores the movement of Hong Kong and Taiwanese triads to mainland China. It argues that the members and bosses of foreign triads are present on the mainland, but have not yet emerged ... More

This chapter explores the movement of Hong Kong and Taiwanese triads to mainland China. It argues that the members and bosses of foreign triads are present on the mainland, but have not yet emerged as a viable mafia supplying private protection. As in the case of Bardonecchia and Rome, mafiosi did not decide to migrate out of their own free will. Their presence in the new territory is the unintended consequence of police action in their country of origin. Once they found themselves on the mainland, they quickly realized that the new China offered many opportunities to invest some of their gangs' funds, but they have so far failed to establish themselves as viable protectors for legal entrepreneurs.Less

A Malady of Modernity: Constructing Organized Crime in the UK

Dick Hobbs

in Lush Life: Constructing Organized Crime in the UK

This chapter explores the construction of organized crime in the UK, and the institutions and practices that constitute its governance. It argues that UK law enforcement agencies and their political ... More

This chapter explores the construction of organized crime in the UK, and the institutions and practices that constitute its governance. It argues that UK law enforcement agencies and their political masters currently perceive organized crime as a major threat — a view stemming from the perceived expansion of illegal economic activity and its cosmopolitan associations due to globalization. The emergence of organized crime as a social problem in the UK is attributed to the pressures brought by powerful forces of global governance to coordinate categories of transgression. Leading this drive are institutions reconfigured by notions of threat formulated in American cities and police precincts as well as in policy arenas dominated by American interests, accompanied by a complementary discourse from the evolving European community for which organized crime had become inextricably linked to the multitude of threats emanating from the East.Less

A Review of Gang Literature

Robert McLean

in Gangs, Drugs and (Dis)Organised Crime

Having outlined the purpose of the book in Part I, in the last chapter, chapter 2 reviews existing US and British gang literature. This chapter breaks down the gang concept and analyse literature ... More

Having outlined the purpose of the book in Part I, in the last chapter, chapter 2 reviews existing US and British gang literature. This chapter breaks down the gang concept and analyse literature form three resulting perspectives: the environment; the structure; and activities. This allows aspects of the gang to be analysed while also accounting for a holistic picture as well. The chapter then looks to explain how research has gradually brought closer concepts of ‘the gang’ and ‘drug harms’ - in that drug distribution has become a central feature when conducting gang research. After reviewing gang research the chapter then provides a brief overview on organised crime literature. This explains how aspects of the gang, at all levels, has come to be tied to various aspects of organised crime terminology. As a consequence, such perceptions retain potentially net-widening and criminalising properties.Less

Scottish Gang Literature

Robert McLean

in Gangs, Drugs and (Dis)Organised Crime

While chapter 2 outlined gang research in three main ways - context, structure, and literature – the discussion was largely situated within the wider US, European, and broader UK context. Yet ... More

While chapter 2 outlined gang research in three main ways - context, structure, and literature – the discussion was largely situated within the wider US, European, and broader UK context. Yet Scottish gang literature was excluded. This chapter looks at gang research in the Scottish context more specifically and as such can essentially be broken into two parts. The first part of this chapter looks at Scottish gang literature in much the same format that the previous chapter explored gang research more broadly. This means looking at gang structure, activity and context. The second half of the chapter is dedicated to exploring in detail some of those reasons which have contributed to the stagnation of Scottish gang literature and how gangs are believed to be in the Scottish arena. This is explained by exploring several contributory factors, ranging from gang narratives, conducting gang research, socio-economic influences, amongst other reasons.Less