Law and You > Criminal Laws > Criminology > Forms of Organized Crimes
Organized crime is defined as “those involved, normally working with others, in continuing serious criminal activities for a substantial profit, elsewhere”. The organized crime involves extortion, collection of protection money from rich businessmen, contract killing, kidnapping, film financing, human trafficking, human organ trafficking, drug trafficking, narcotics trafficking, smuggling and illicit trade in Arms and Ammunition. In this article, we shall study different forms of organized crimes. They are as follows:
Drug Trafficking:
Drug trafficking is a global illicit trade involving the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws. It is a very lucrative industry because there is limited competition among the organized crime groups involved in crime relating to drug trafficking. Both the supplier of the raw materials and the consumers of the final product are not very powerful people to cause any type of harm to offenders. Numerous organized crime groups of varying sizes are involved in the cultivation of opium or cannabis and transformation of raw materials into a synthetic form of drugs. They are also involved in drug distribution from one country to another. Large scale international movements of cocaine and heroin are mostly controlled by transnational organized crime groups, for whom drugs are consequently a primary source of revenue.
According to UN report of that total, opium from Myanmar and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic yields some 50 tons, while the rest, some 380 tons of heroin and morphine, is produced exclusively from Afghan opium. While approximately 5 tons are consumed and seized in Afghanistan, the remaining bulk of 375 tons is trafficked worldwide via routes flowing into and through the countries neighbouring Afghanistan. The Balkan and northern routes are the main heroin trafficking corridors linking Afghanistan to the huge markets of the Russian Federation and Western Europe. (UNODC World Drug Report 2010)
Drug Trafficking in India:
India is wedged between the world’s two largest areas of illicit opium production, the Golden Crescent and the Golden Triangle. India is geographically situated between the countries of the Golden Triangle (Thailand, Burma and Laos) and the Golden Crescent,( Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan). This proximity has traditionally been viewed as a source of vulnerability since it has made India both a destination and a transit route for opiates produced in these regions. This fact continues to be important in defining drug trafficking trends in the subcontinent.
India also produces a considerable amount of illicit opium, part of which also finds a place in the illicit market in different forms. The illicit drug trade in India centres around five major substances, namely, heroin, hashish, opium, cannabis and amphetamines. Seizures of cocaine, amphetamines and Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD) are not unknown but are insignificant and rare.
India’s borders have traditionally been most vulnerable to drug trafficking. In 1996, out of the total quantity of heroin seized in the country, 64 per cent was traced to the Golden Crescent. The Indo-Myanmar border is also quite sensitive but the percentage of seizures is much smaller. The India-Sri Lanka border has also started contributing considerably to the drug trade. In 1995, 13,554 persons, including 130 foreign nationals, were arrested under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
As per UNODC Report, India is the only country currently producing licit opium gum for domestic medical and scientific purposes as well as for export under the terms of the 1961 Single Convention. A small amount of illicit opium cultivation takes place in India, primarily in Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir, Uttaranchal and Arunachal Pradesh. Indian authorities discover new areas under illicit opium poppy cultivation and took prompt action to destroy the illicit crop.
In India, currently, injecting drug use is more closely linked to the abuse of licit opiate pharmaceuticals than to illicit drugs. India is a large manufacturer of pharmaceuticals. The law regulates its production and sale, but there is no uniformity in the monitoring of compliance with the law. This contributes to an increase in the abuse of pharmaceutical drugs. The smuggling of pharmaceuticals from India, especially codeine-based cough syrups, dextropropoxyphene and injectable buprenorphine, is a major concern for India’s neighbours, particularly Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Other pharmaceuticals that are also commonly diverted for abuse within India as well as for smuggling include diazepam and nitrazepam.
Large quantities of the chemicals used in the pharmaceutical industry have been diverted in producing illegal drugs like Mandrax and Methamphetamine. The Cannabis and Hashish processed in India for pharmaceutical and therapeutic purpose are highly in demand for their quality. Some Nigerian and Afghan nationals are found to be in the crime of drug trafficking. They think India is a huge market for drugs.
Prevention and Control of Drug Trafficking:
Department of Revenue is the nodal department responsible for the administration of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1986 and implementation of international conventions, treaties, bilateral agreements and MOUs. The anti-drug laws were further tightened with the enactment of the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (PITNDPS Act) in 1988. The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) which was created in terms of this Act acts as the nodal agency for intelligence collection, dissemination, enforcement and co-ordination with various Central and State enforcement organizations and international, regional and foreign enforcement agencies.
Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN) has been primarily given the responsibility of licensing and supervising opium cultivation and procuring opium from the cultivators. In addition, the EXIM Policy designated it as the competent authority for the following purposes:
- Export of psychotropic substances and precursor chemicals.
- For interaction with foreign governments, UN bodies, other international organizations besides Customs, Central Excise and enforcement agencies of various States concerned
- To verify the legitimacy of the foreign trade transactions, and
- Investigation of the suspected consignments in order to prevent their diversion to illicit channels.
Human Trafficking:
Human trafficking is a serious crime and a grave violation of human rights. Every year, thousands of men, women and children fall into the hands of traffickers, in their own countries and abroad. Almost every country in the world is affected by trafficking, whether as a country of origin, transit or destination for victims. Human trafficking involves recruitment, harbouring or transporting people into a situation of exploitation through the use of violence, deception or coercion and forced to work against their will.
The aim of human trafficking can be sexual exploitation, forced prostitution, forced labour, forced begging, forced criminality, domestic servitude, forced marriage, slavery, and forced organ removal. Assessing the full scope of human trafficking is difficult because so cases so often go undetected, something the United Nations refers to as “the hidden figure of crime. According to Rajarethinam, “Trafficking can be disguised as migration, commercial sex, or marriage. But that begins with the voluntary decision often ends up as trafficking, as victim find themselves in unfamiliar destinations, subjected to unexpected work.” According to Jill Shirey, a consultant at the American Centre for International Labour Solidarity (ACILS) “people are forced into accepting unknown jobs due to lack of options”.
Human trafficking does not mean only physical transportation of across borders but it includes bringing them into exploitative conditions at a place where they are. Many people who fall, a victim of trafficking, want to escape poverty, improve their lives, and support their families. Often they get an offer of a well-paid job abroad or in another region. Often they borrow money from their traffickers in advance to pay for arranging the job, travel and accommodation. When they arrive they find that the work they applied for does not exist, or the conditions are completely different. But it’s too late, their documents are often taken away and they are forced to work until their debt is paid off.
Transnational criminal organizations are getting more and more involved in the trafficking of the human being. Criminals have been taking advantage of people‘s inclination to migrate from one country to another. Human trafficking has been generating a lot of profit to organized crime racketeers. Organized criminal groups are involved in varying degrees of child sexual exploitation and human trafficking activities. Child prostitution, pornography and human trafficking are often committed in tandem. After men, women and/or youth are smuggled into a country, the women and children are forced to endure various forms of sexual exploitation. Sexually exploited youth are given drugs to feed their addiction and to sustain their activity.
Similarly, it is noted that there is an increase in crimes committed by illegal immigrants compared to the native population creates fear and misperceptions about the good intentions and character of trafficked people.
UNODC, as guardian of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the Protocols thereto, assists States in their efforts to implement the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons (Trafficking in Persons Protocol).
Prevention of Human Trafficking:
Constitutional Provisions:
- Article 23(1) of the Constitution lays down that “Traffic in human beings and begar and other similar forms of forced labour are prohibited and any contravention of this provision shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law”.
- Article 24 of the constitution lays down that ” No child below the age of fourteen years shall be employed to work in any factory or mine or engaged in any other hazardous employment.”
Indian Penal Code:
- Section 366A of IPC lays down that ” Whoever, by any means whatsoever, induces any minor girl under the age of eighteen years to go from any place or to do any act with intent that such girl may be, or knowing that it is likely that she will be, forced or seduced to illicit intercourse with another person shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.”
- Section 366B of IPC lays down that ” Whoever imports into India from any country outside India or from the State of Jammu and Kashmir any girl under the age of twenty-one years with intent that she may be, or knowing it to be likely that she will be, forced or seduced to illicit intercourse with another person, shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable to fine.
- Section 374 of IPC lays down that ” Whoever unlawfully compels any person to labour against the will of that person, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.”
Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956
The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 is the primary legislation for the prevention of sexual exploitation for women and girls. The ITPA is the main legislation related to the commercial sexual exploitation of children, it does not define trafficking.
Offences specified are:
- Keeping a brothel or allowing premises to be used as a brothel
- Living on the earnings of prostitution
- Attempting, procuring or taking person for the sake of prostitution
- Detaining any person in premises for prostitution
- Prostitution in the vicinity of public places
- Seduction of a person in custody
Goa Children’s Act, 2003
This act defined Trafficking as: Trafficking includes every type of sexual exploitation in the definition of sexual assault. The manager and owner of the establishment are responsible for the safety of minors or children in hotel premises. There are strict laws on about the safety of children and publishing pornographic materials.
Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986
The Act prohibits employment of children below specific age and in certain specified occupations. It also imposes punishment for the employment of minor children.
Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000
The law is relevant for children who are vulnerable and are therefore likely to be the victim of trafficking. It protects juveniles in need of care and protection.
Other important Acts are Karnataka Devadasi (Prohibition of Dedication) Act, 1982 and Andhra Pradesh Devadasi (Prohibiting Dedication) Act, 1989.
Money Laundering:
Money laundering is one of the major activities, criminal organizations are developing as a means to conceal their illegal proceeds. Dictionary meaning of money laundering is the concealment of the origins of illegally obtained money, typically by means of transfers involving foreign banks or legitimate businesses. Organized criminals generate a large amount from illegal activities. They try to legitimize it. In India, money laundering is referred as Hawala Transactions. In money laundering; money is invested in such a way that even the investigating agencies can’t trace the main source of wealth. The person who manipulates this money is called “launderer”. The black money invested in capital markets or other ventures returns back to the real money holder as the legitimate money.
Stages of Money Laundering:
Placement:
In this stage the launderer deposits the illegal money through different agents and banks in the form of cash by having a formal or informal agreement.
Layering:
This stage separates the funds from their source and designed to disguise the audit trail. In this stage, the launderer hides his real income by making a foul play. He conceals the source of the money through a series of transactions and bookkeeping tricks. The launderer deposits funds to investment instruments such as bonds, stocks, and traveller’s checks or in their bank accounts abroad. Such an account is often opened in banks of those countries which do not reveal the details of their account holders. So in this process, the ownership and source of money are disguised.
Integration:
This stage involves the introduction of criminally derived wealth into the legitimate economy without arousing suspicion and with some apparent legitimacy for its sources. In this stage, the ‘laundered’ property is re-introduced into the legitimate economy OR Returning the money back into the financial world as legal money.
Methods of Money laundering:
By Formation of Shell Companies:
In this method, fake companies also known as Shell Companies are established. These companies are shown to act like real companies. They do not exist in real-world but actually exist only on paper and no production takes place in such companies.
Launderer shows large transactions in such Shell Companies’ balance sheets. He takes a loan in the name of these companies, gets tax exemption from the government, does not file income tax returns. False documents are shown to tax and regulating authorities on their demand. Thus a large amount of black money is generated through the fake activities of the shell companies.
By Showing Less value of Purchased Property:
A large house, shop, or mall is bought but less value is shown on paper. The actual market value of these purchased properties is much higher than that shown on paper. This is done to reduce the tax burden. Thus, black money is generated through tax evasion.
Prevention of Money Laundering:
The Prevention of Money Laundering Act was enacted in 2002, and it has been amended 3 times (2005, 2009 and 2012). The Act has three main objectives as follows:
- To prevent and control money laundering
- To confiscate and seize the property obtained from laundered money
- To deal with any other issue connected with money laundering in India
Now RBI, SEBI and Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) have been brought out under the purview of PMLA, 2002. Hence the provisions of this Act shall apply to all financial institutions, banks, mutual funds, insurance companies and their financial intermediaries.
Other Forms of Organized Crime:
- Frauds/Scams: Fraud is committed not only by professionals in a legitimate industry, under the official cover, but also by organized crime gangs. Criminal organizations take advantage of the personal and corporate financial information available and the ability to access that information through computer technology. Section 420 of IPC deals with cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property.
- Counterfeiting of Currency: Counterfeit money is imitation currency produced without the legal sanction of the state or government, usually in a deliberate attempt to imitate that currency and so as to deceive its recipient. Organized criminal groups are involved in the counterfeiting of currency. Section 489 A of IPC deals with it.
- Trafficking of Fire Arms and Trafficking in Nuclear Material: It is reported that transnational crime syndicates smuggle firearms made in one country into the other through the Airports and Seaports of the country by simply mis-declaring or not declaring them and mixing or hiding them in cargoes consigned to fictitious names and addresses. They are used by the group or sold in local markets.
- Automobile Theft and Smuggling: Vehicles are stolen from the United States of America and are shipped to countries like China, Phillippines, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.