Posted on 01/24/2025 7:55:13 PM PST by SeekAndFind
Organized crime groups have surged in recent decades, aided by the rise of synthetic drugs, encrypted technologies, and multinational operations.
For instance, a leading Brazilian mob has 60,000 affiliates spread across 26 countries in addition to its 40,000 members. Moreover, criminal actors are increasingly diversifying their operations, engaging in activities such as human smuggling, drug trafficking, and the exploitation of food supply chains.
This graphic, via Visual Capitalist's Dorothy Neufeld, shows organized crime hot spots around the world, based on data from the Global Organized Crime Index.
The Global Organized Crime Index analyzes 193 countries based on their scale of criminal activity. It includes three main components:
Criminal actor influence and structure: e.g. mafia-style groups, criminal networks, state-embedded actors
Criminal market scale and impact: e.g. arms trafficking, heroin trade, human trafficking
Each country’s resilience to organized crime: e.g. judicial system, government transparency
Overall, countries were scored on a scale of 0 to 10 by the extent to which organized crime groups exert control over their direct economic activities.
Below, we show the top 30 hubs for organized crime groups worldwide:
Central and South America have the highest concentration of organized crime globally, with the most widespread criminal activity in Venezuela and Colombia.
In particular, criminal actors are known for serious extortion practices, human smuggling, and illegal arms trafficking. The economic crisis in Venezuela, which has forced millions to flee, has contributed to the rise in human smuggling and trafficking, with victims being targeted even beyond the Colombian-Venezuelan border.
In Mexico, criminal actors are increasingly targeting the food industry, including avocados, tortillas, potatoes, and limes, among others.
Myanmar also stands as a key hub for human trafficking, with an estimated 120,000 victims being used for forced labor in scam centers. These scam centers, which generate billions of dollars, operate largely along border of China and Myanmar, where victims are lured by significant perks.
Meanwhile, the illicit arms trade in pervasive across Somalia. The jihadist group, al-Shabab, has infiltrated political and economic structures, serving as a key player in illegal arms trafficking. Each year, the group is estimated to make $100 million from its extortion activities alone.
To learn more about this topic from a homicide perspective, check out this graphic on the world’s highest homicide rates by region.
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They missed the biggest Organized Crime Hot Spot on earth..
DC
This analysis totally missed the US Capitol......
Odd, Washington DC is nowhere on the list?
You guys beat me to it. The first thing I looked for was D.C. And none of the State Capitols either.
India, China, and Russia need to be on the list. Not including them is a severe oversight.
I prefer Sicilians to organize my crimes.
Where’s Washington DC and Newsom’s Sacramento?
There should be a huge hotspot on DC and the DNC headquarters.
And they exceed BY FAR the income generated by the other groups.
“And none of the State Capitols either.”
One wonders if the State legislatures would provide a better class of Senators or nought.
.
For example, downtown Detroit is OK along the river, but many other areas are no-go.
There is one in Washington DC.
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