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Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Crime & criminology > Organized crime > General
Mexico's Drug War and Criminal Networks examines the effects of technology on three criminal organizations: the Sinaloa cartel, the Zetas, and the Caballeros Templarios. Using social network analysis, and analyzing the use of web platforms Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, Nilda M. Garcia provides fresh insights on the organizational network, the central nodes, and the channels through which information flows in these three criminal organizations. In doing so, she demonstrates that some drug cartels in Mexico have adopted the usage of social media into their strategies, often pursuing different tactics in the search for new ways to dominate. She finds that the strategic adaptation of social media platforms has different effects on criminal organization's survivability. When used effectively, coupled with the adoption of decentralized structures, these platforms do increase a criminal organization's survival capacity. Nonetheless, if used haphazardly, it can have the opposite effect. Drawing on the fields of criminology, social network analysis, international relations, and organizational theory and featuring a wealth of information about the drug cartels themselves, Mexico's Drug War and Criminal Networks will be a great source for all those interested in the presence, behavior, purposes, and strategies of drug cartels in their forays into social media platforms in Mexico and beyond.
A realistic understanding of the mafia must avoid depictions both of a monolithic organization and of localized, isolated groups. Here, renowned historian Salvatore Lupo analyzes the mafia as a network of varied relationships and institutions, the result of a complex cultural and social encounter that was shaped by multiple, diverse environments.
'Grit, twists and great characters. Alex Kane at her finest!' Emma Tallon, author of Her Payback Being head of a family is what she knows bestA decade ago, Cara Fraser, wife to one of Glasgow's most notorious gangsters, was left a widow after Kyle Fraser was slain on the city streets. The intervening years haven't been easy - not least as Kyle's murder left her to bring up little Ryan and Sean alone. Now, Ryan and Sean are adults, and honouring their father's memory by rising up to become the top gangsters on the dark streets of Glasgow. Cara's kept her head down, but has spent the last few years vowing to take vengeance on the crime family who killed her beloved husband and left her children without a father. Glasgow gangland is about to discover that a mother will do anything for her family... even murder. A gritty crime thriller that fans of Kimberley Chambers and Mandasue Heller won't be able to put down. Praise for The Mother: 'Another fantastic gritty Gangland thriller from Alex Kane. Five stars from me!' Gemma Rogers, author of The Feud 'This is a phenomenal read...perfectly written and paced. You absolutely cannot predict this one.' Reader Review 'One hell of a book, full of action... five stars from me, especially for the slap bang ending that I didn't see coming.' Reader Review 'I love her ability to make each character likeable, even the bad guys. I'm counting down the days till the next book by this author. Highly recommended.' Reader Review 'Another jaw dropping explosive read from Alex Kane, her writing just gets better and better every time.' Reader Review 'This was addictive, fast paced and ruthless. I loved it. A brilliant story line kept me hooked and wanting more.' Reader Review 'Action packed, gripping and I found it hard to put the book down. I never saw that ending coming.' Reader Review 'Fast paced, gritty, exciting, highly recommend' Reader Review Praise for Alex Kane's utterly unputdownable gangster thrillers: 'A must read! Highly deserving of all the stars and completely unputdownable.' Reader Review 'A brilliant read. I couldn't put it down - the writing is so good you feel like you're part of the action.' Reader Review 'So gripping and unputdownable...Fantastic, with loads of full on action. I loved it all.' Reader Review 'Wow. These books just get better and better...just brilliant.' Reader Review 'I read this book in one night and all I have is 3 words. Oh my god.' Reader Review 'I was gripped from page one and had sleepless nights because I couldn't put it down. Worth way more than five stars.' Reader Review
Organised crime, corruption, and terrorism are considered to pose significant and unrelenting threats to the integrity, security, and stability of contemporary societies. Alongside traditional criminal enforcement responses, strategies focused on following the money trail of such crimes have become increasingly prevalent. These strategies include anti-money laundering measures to prevent 'dirty money' from infiltrating the legitimate economy, proceeds of crime powers to target the accumulated assets derived from crime, and counter-terrorist financing measures to prevent 'clean' money from being used for terrorist purposes. This collection brings together 17 emerging researchers in the fields of anti-money laundering, proceeds of crime, counter-terrorist financing and corruption to offer critical analyses of contemporary anti-assets strategies and state responses to a range of financial crimes. The chapters focus on innovative anti-financial crime measures and assemblages of governance that have become a feature of late modernity and on the ways in which individual nation states have responded to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing requirements in light of their specific social, political, and economic contexts. This collection draws on perspectives from law, criminology, sociology, politics, and other disciplines. It adopts a much-needed international approach, focusing not only on expected jurisdictions, such as the United States and United Kingdom, but also on analysis from countries such as Qatar, Kuwait, Iran, and Nigeria. The authors stand out for their fresh and original research, which places them at the cutting edge of the subject. This book provides a comprehensive, insightful, and original study of an important and developing field for academics, students, practitioners, and policymakers in multiple jurisdictions.
It has long been believed that the most effective way to immobilise organised criminal activity lies in blocking the channels that allow illegally-obtained assets to enter the economic mainstream. Yet even as international law enforcement co-operation in this vital endeavour becomes ever more focused, the bewildering domain of criminal money laundering techniques remains elusive. The "gross national product" of international crime still exceeds that of many nations. A main aim of this new book is to marry what we know of laundering channels and methods on the one hand and existing legal regimes (both preventive and reactive) on the other. Although major victories on the side of law and order are not numerous so far, the author clearly demonstrates that progress is being made in certain areas and that the overall thrust of international law and cooperation in the field is growing stronger. She goes on to identify a number of linkages between criminal necessities and potential legal measures that are likely to bear fruit. It is the author's belief that the insights gained by this in-depth comparison will shed light on the paths to be followed by law enforcement agents and judicial tribunals as they pursue their goal of stemming the flow of laundered illegal money into the world's economies.
The 'ndrangheta - the Calabrian region of Italy's mafia - is one of wealthiest and most powerful criminal organizations today. It is considered Italy's most powerful mafia; it's not only the main object of concern for anti-mafia units in Italy, but also for joint investigative teams in Europe and beyond. Combining autobiography, travel ethnography, memoir, academic rigour and investigative journalism, this book provides a global outlook on the 'ndrangheta, taking the reader to small villages and locations in Italy and abroad to Australia, Canada, United States and Argentina.
This book describes and analyzes conflict commodities, which the author defines as "high-value commodities trafficked in by networks of transnational criminals who use the illicitly derived proceeds to finance armed conflict and loot natural resource wealth from national treasuries." Each chapter examines a different commodity or set of commodities that have become the province of transnational organized crime networks: diamonds, ivory, rhino horn, timber, lapis lazuli, jade, rare minerals, gold, and oil receive scholarly analyses across multiple dimensions, including the structure and operation of criminal networks, the social and environmental consequences of the various conflict commodities trades, and the full range of palliative responses. The book provides coverage of all the players involved, from high-ranking government officials to insurgent groups and terrorists. The work also enumerates the array of human rights abuses associated with the traffic in conflict commodities
This timely book provides contributions on international, comparative crime phenomena: gangs, trafficking, fear of crime, and crime prevention. It highlights contributions originally prepared for the XVII World Congress of Criminology and for the 2015 Cybercrime Conference in Onati, Spain which have been selected, reviewed, and adapted for inclusion in this volume. The work features international contributors sharing the latest research and approaches from a variety of global regions. The first part examines the impact of gangs on criminal activities and violence. The second part explores illegal trafficking of people, drugs, and other illicit goods as a global phenomenon, aided by the ease of international travel, funds transfer, and communication. Finally, international approaches to crime detection prevention are presented. The work provides case studies and fieldwork that will be relevant across a variety of disciplines and a rich resource for future research. This work is relevant for researchers in criminology and criminal justice, as well as related fields such as international and comparative law, public policy, and public health.
This collection of essays demonstrates how the security of Americans is potentially threatened by individuals and governments who are engaged in the illicit trade in arms, drugs, and human beings in distant parts of the globe. More than just a threat to Americans, the essays underscore that these activities are often detrimental to the United States interests around the world due to the destabilizing impact that each activity can have on a nation or region. More revealing is how terrorists benefit from this illegal trade, generating critical sources of funding used for everything from recruiting to procurement of weapons and explosives of all types to extend and expand the scope of their struggle. The scope of this work is truly global. Fourteen essays touch on prevailing problems from the Balkans to Southeast Asia and the Pacific; from Africa to the Caribbean, and more. In each essay, the authors explore a problem that not only has direct regional repercussions, but larger international ones as well. The essays present problems that result from these illegal activities as a global epidemic, not simply regionalized problems.
This book aims to describe and demystify what makes criminal gangs so culturally powerful. It examines their codes of conduct, initiation rites, secret communications methods, origin myths, symbols, and the like that imbue the gangsters with the pride and nonchalance that goes hand in hand with their criminal activities. Mobsters are everywhere in the movies, on television, and on websites. Contemporary societies are clearly fascinated by them. Why is this so? What feature and constituents of organized criminal gangs make them so emotionally powerful-to themselves and others? These are the questions that have guided the writing of this textbook, which is intended as an introduction to organized crime from the angle of cultural analysis. Key topics include: * An historic overview of organized crime, including the social, economic, and cultural conditions that favour its development; * A review of the type of people who make up organized gangs and the activities in which they engage; * The symbols, rituals, codes and languages that characterize criminal institutions; * The relationship between organized crime and cybercrime; * The role of women in organized crime; * Drugs and narco-terrorism; * Media portrayals of organized crime. Organized Crime includes case studies and offers an accessible, interdisciplinary approach to the subject of organized crime. It is essential reading for students engaged with organized crime across criminology, sociology, anthropology and psychology.
Largely forgotten now, Frankie Yale was an influential New York mobster of the early 20th century whose proteges included future leaders of New York's five Mafia families and Chicago's outfit. His influence extended to Chicago, where he personally committed two of the city's most notorious underworld assassinations and waged a five-year war to wrest control of Brooklyn's docks from Irish rivals. His murder marked New York City's first use of a Tommy gun in gangland warfare, the same weapon used in Chicago's St. Valentine's Day massacre seven months later. Yale's passing destabilized Gotham's Mafia, paving the way for an upheaval that modified and modernized the structure of American syndicated crime for the next six decades. Despite Yale's prominence during his life, this is the first biography to survey his life and career.
The concept of 'organised crime' is constructed and mobilised by a milieu of complex factors and discourses including a politics of law and order, and international insecurity, combined with the vested interests and priorities of scholars, politicians, government officials, and policing authorities. This book challenges existing assumptions and accepted understandings of organised crime, and explores the ways in which it is amplified and reconstructed for political purposes. This book critiques how the constitution of the 'organised crime problem' in academic and political discourse provides the conditions necessary for the development of an extensive and international architecture of law, policing, surveillance and intelligence. It examines emerging challenges and future directions including the impact of technology on new problems, and for transnational policing, such as the ease with which the Internet enables crime to be committed across borders, and for electronic communications to be protected with strong encryption hampering interception. No other text presents an integrated and comprehensive study of both the politicisation and policing of organised crime, while questioning the outcomes for society at large. Drawing on international fieldwork and interviews with senior national and supranational policing personnel, this book compares and contrasts various narratives on organised crime. It will be of interest to students and researchers engaged in studies of criminology, criminal justice, organised crime, policing, and law.
This book explores China's Belt and Road Initiative and the criminogenic potential for economic, financial, and socio-cultural cooperation across countries, where some are known for weak law enforcement and high levels of corruption. It examines whether these flows of capital are increasing the amount of organized crime in the newly linked regions and how law enforcement agencies are responding. Bringing together experts across the Global South and Europe, this book considers transnational organized crime and corruption across One Belt One Road (OBOR). It examines crime and corruption in China and its international United Front tactic; analyzes various forms of transnational organized crime such as trafficking of illegal drugs, looted antiquities, and wildlife and counterfeit products; and presents studies on corruption and organized crime in selected OBOR countries including Russia, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Poland, and Bangladesh. This book makes a significant contribution to the development of southern criminology and will also be of interest to those engaged with transnational organized crime, political economy, international relations, and Asian and Chinese studies.
Extremist Propaganda in Social Media: A Threat to Homeland Security presents both an analysis of the impact of propaganda in social media and the rise of extremism in mass society from technological and social perspectives. The book identifies the current phenomenon, what shall be dubbed for purposes of this book "Blisstopian Societies"-characterized in the abiding "ignorance is bliss" principle-whereby a population is complacent and has unquestioning acceptance of a social doctrine without challenge and introspection. In these subcultures, the malleable population self-select social media content, "news," and propaganda delivery mechanisms. By doing so, they expose themselves only to content that motivates, reinforces, and contributes to their isolation, alienation, and self-regulation of the social groups and individuals. In doing this, objective news is dismissed, fake-or news otherwise intended to misinform-reinforces their stereotyped beliefs about society and the world around them. This phenomenon is, unfortunately, not "fake news," but a real threat to which counterterror, intelligence, Homeland Security, law enforcement, the military, and global organizations must be hyper-vigilant of, now and into the foreseeable future. Chapters cite numerous examples from the 2016 political election, the Russia investigation into the Trump Campaign, ISIS, domestic US terrorists, among many other examples of extremist and radicalizing rhetoric. The book illustrates throughout that this contrived and manufactured bliss has fueled the rise and perpetuation of hate crimes, radicalism, and violence in such groups as ISIS, Boko Haram, Neo-Nazis, white separatists, and white supremacists in the United States-in addition to perpetuating ethnic cleansing actions around the world. This dynamic has led to increased political polarization in the United States and abroad, while furthering an unwillingness and inability to both compromise or see others' perspectives-further fomenting insular populations increasing willing to harm others and do violence. Extremist Propaganda in Social Media relates current Blisstopian practices to real-world hate speech and violence, connecting how such information is consumed by groups and translated into violent action. The book is an invaluable resources for those professionals that require an awareness of social media radicalization including: social media strategists, law enforcement, Homeland Security professionals, military planners and operatives-anyone tasked with countering combat such violent factions and fringes in conflict situations.
ORGANIZED CRIME examines how criminal groups are organized; the widening of their business activities; and the statutes, agencies, and techniques used to combat organized crime. Updated throughout, the eleventh edition reflects the decline of the American Mafia, its importance dwindling as new criminal organizations emerge. The text also explains how criminal organizations operating on a global scale have become more sophisticated and more threatening, and examines additional crime groups that have been added to the pantheon we refer to as organized crime.
Understanding Green Card Marriage Fraud explores personal accounts of participation in Green Card marriage fraud (GCMF), also known as 'cash-for-vows', by legal and illegal immigrants, U.S. citizens, and marriage fraud brokers. This book reveals the various roles played by the marriage fraud brokers and others who aid, abet, or otherwise act as accessories to GCMF. Additional details provide the reasons why people commit GCMF and the methods they use in order to deceive immigration officials. Today, Green Card marriage fraud has acquired new importance due to world upheavals and the plight of refugees. The division in American public opinion has become political football and has led to various changes in immigration policy, often depending on the occupant of the White House. The study of Green Card marriage fraud can serve as a microcosm of the federal government's involvement in crime control. The author puts Green Card marriage fraud in the context of current immigration policies, suggesting necessary policy reforms since current rules and procedures are ineffective in detecting such fraudulent marriages. In unraveling the mystique surrounding GCMF, the methods of crime control and migration control converge revealing the 'crimmigration phenomenon' with GCMF falling in the middle of this nexus.
MONEY, MURDER, AND MACHIAVELLIAN MAYHEM ... CONTAINS A NEW EPILOGUE Mafia Prince is the first person account of one of the most brutal eras in Mafia history, Little Nicky" Scarfo's reign as boss of the Philadelphia family in the 1980s,written by Scarfo's underboss and nephew, Crazy Phil" Leonetti.The youngest-ever underboss at the age of 33, Leonetti was at the crux of the violent breakup of the traditional American Mafia in the 1980s when he infiltrated Atlantic City after gambling was legalized, and later turned state's evidence against his own. His testimony led directly to the convictions of dozens of high-ranking men including John Gotti, Vincent Gigante, and the downfall of his own uncle, Nick Scarfo,sparking the beginning of the end of La Cosa Nostra (the insiders' term for the Mafia, translated as This Thing of Ours").
From corporate corruption and the facilitation of money laundering, to food fraud and labour exploitation, European citizens continue to be confronted by serious corporate and white-collar crimes. Presenting an original series of provocative essays, this book offers a European framing of white-collar crime. Experts from different countries foreground what is unique, innovative or different about white-collar and corporate crimes that are so strongly connected to Europe, including the tensions that exist within and between the nation-states of Europe, and within the institutions of the European region. This European voice provides an original contribution to discourses surrounding a form of crime which is underrepresented in current criminological literature.
This book provides a comprehensive analysis of the illegal extraction of metals and minerals from the perspectives of organized crime theory, green criminology, anti-corruption studies, and victimology. It includes contributions that focus on organized crime-related offences, such as drug trafficking and trafficking in persons, extortion, corruption and money laundering and sheds light on the serious environmental harms caused by illegal mining. Based on a wide range of case studies from the Amazon rainforest through the Ukrainian flatlands to the desert-like savanna of Central African Republic and Australia's elevated plateaus, this book offers a unique insight into the illegal mining business and the complex relationship between organized crime, corruption, and ecocide. This is the first book-length publication on illegal extraction, trafficking in mined commodities, and ecocide associated with mining. It will appeal to scholars working on organized crime and green crime, including criminologists, sociologists, anthropologists, and legal scholars. Practitioners and the general public may welcome this comprehensive and timely publication to contemplate on resource-scarcity, security, and crime in a rapidly changing world.
1. Provides an engaging and accessible introduction to the psychological study of terrorism for students and the interested general reader 2. Features real-life case studies to engage readers 3. Includes further reading aimed at students wishing to use it as a primer for further s 4. Part of a series of books providing an accessible precis of the psychological of popular and contemporary topics
This book describes and analyzes the convergence of transnational organized crime and jihadist terrorism that has taken place within Russian-speaking social networks in Western Europe. Studies have shown that while under certain circumstances links between criminal organizations and terrorist groups appear, these are usually opportunistic and temporary in nature. Only rarely do they develop into something deeper and transformative, a convergence between crime and terrorism. This book reveals that Russian-speaking transnational organized crime and jihadist terrorism pose a serious threat to security and constitute a major challenge for law enforcement. Through their links with transnational organized crime, Russian-speaking jihadist networks from the Caucasus and Central Asia have easier access to weaponry, commercial explosives, and forged IDs than many other jihadist networks. Being in effect an integral component of transnational organized crime, the Russian-speaking jihadists can be assessed as potentially more capable than many other jihadists. The book assesses the effects of terrorism and organized crime on Russian-speaking diasporas in Western Europe and examines the implications for counterterrorism as well as policing on how to counteract the illegal activities of these networks. Drawing on Swedish court cases the work shows that an additional, and sometimes more effective way, to fight terrorism is by focusing on the non-terrorist types of crime perpetrated by terrorists. This book will be of much interest to students of terrorism and counter-terrorism, political violence, criminology, security studies and IR in general.
Corruption is increasingly placed on top of the agenda of national governments and supra national institutions, such as the OECD, UN or the World Bank. A necessary condition for promoting sustainable economic growth is the pre-existence of a stable political system which is able to control corruption. Corruption, however, is a very complex issue, associated with institutional and cultural specificities, personality traits related to individualistic values, and criminal personalities. In this book the social, political and economic realities that prevail in particular settings are viewed from an interdisciplinary, multidimensional, and a multi country perspective. This book is divided into three parts. The first part presents a comprehensive, theoretical and empirical framework of corruption with an overview of literature on economic growth and corruption. Part two, encompasses the in-depth analysis of several countries, ranging from middle corrupted contexts like Portugal, to highly corrupted countries including Serbia, Russia, Thailand and China- the latter viewed from the perspective of firms from a very low corruption country such as Finland. The final part explores the prevention and control of corruption, looking at the public sector in Thailand and fighting corruption with different strategies. This volume is of the interest of those who study international economics, development economics or organised crime.
This book aims to provide the readers a better understanding of rural China through the particular perspective of the rural underworld. It proposes new concepts to describe social changes of rural China by comparing the contemporary rural society with the acquaintance society-the classic model for depicting the traditional Chinese society. The author's down-to-earth fieldwork has revealed that, with a permeating gang influence, the society of rural China has actually changed in nature. Such change in social nature is summarized as "the estrangement of acquaintances" or "moral ambiguity". As a result of the rural gangster's unlawful acts of lining their pockets with national resources, rural China is going through "rural governance involution." In short, this book develops new models and concepts to establish a comprehensive scientific conceptual system for explaining social reality. With hard-to-come-by information and a prudent and multi-faceted analysis on a neglected topic, this book gradually reveals to the readers the true picture of rural China. |
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