Criminal Network

A criminal network is a group of individuals who are connected by a common purpose or goal, and who engage in criminal activities together. Criminal networks can be organized in many different ways, and they can operate at local, national, or international levels.

Here are some examples of criminal networks:

A gang of street criminals who engage in activities such as robbery, drug dealing, and extortion.

A network of international smugglers who transport drugs, weapons, or other contraband across national borders.

A group of hackers who operate online to steal sensitive information or to disrupt computer systems.

A network of individuals who engage in human trafficking, exploiting victims for labor or sexual exploitation.

A group of corrupt officials who use their positions of power to engage in activities such as bribery, extortion, and money laundering.

Overall, criminal networks are groups of individuals who work together to engage in criminal activities. They can be organized in many different ways, and they can operate at different levels, from local to international.

Third Committee – Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Issues | UN Press
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Third Committee – Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Issues | UN Press

Note: A complete summary of today’s Third Committee meetings will be available on Tuesday, 4 October. Briefing DELPHINE SCHANTZ, of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), expressed her agency’s support for Member States in their fight against drugs, corruption, terrorism and organized crime, including crimes that affect the environment, and cybercrime.  Championing…

How Technology and Training Can Stop Human Trafficking in its Tracks
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How Technology and Training Can Stop Human Trafficking in its Tracks

On April 8, 2022, a 15-year-old girl went missing from a Mavericks basketball game at the American Airlines Center Arena in Dallas. Surveillance cameras later captured her leaving the arena with an unidentified male who got into the game using a fake ticket. The girl was found 11 days after her abduction thanks to an…

20 Countries Spin a Web to Catch Human Traffickers During Hackathon – HS Today
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20 Countries Spin a Web to Catch Human Traffickers During Hackathon – HS Today

Earlier this month, a joint action day, coordinated by the Netherlands, targeted criminal networks using websites and social media platforms to recruit victims for sexual exploitation. This first online, EU-wide hackathon against trafficking in human beings, supported by Europol and Eurojust, involved law enforcement authorities from 20 countries. The European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats…

Europol “Hackathon” Identifies Scores of Human Trafficking Victims
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Europol “Hackathon” Identifies Scores of Human Trafficking Victims

Law enforcers from over 20 European countries came together earlier this month to clamp down on human traffickers found using online platforms to exploit vulnerable people, including Ukrainian women. The EMPACT joint action day was coordinated by the Netherlands and described by Europol as the first region-wide “hackathon” against human trafficking. Some 85 experts participated…

Legitimate Businesses Used as Fronts for Human Trafficking in Argentina – InSight Crime
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Legitimate Businesses Used as Fronts for Human Trafficking in Argentina – InSight Crime

By InSight Crime Argentina continues to struggle with a human trafficking crisis as domestic and international criminal networks use a range of legal businesses to hide their activities and elude authorities. In a recent case, Argentine authorities dismantled an international human trafficking network in early September, arresting three people accused of trafficking women to Turkey…

Feature: Organ Trafficking Gangs are Cashing in on Egypt’s Economic Woes
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Feature: Organ Trafficking Gangs are Cashing in on Egypt’s Economic Woes

Desperate Egyptians are being forced to sell their organs after a series of government measures left many of the country’s poorest struggling to make ends meet. Police in the city of Giza claim to have smashed a major organ trafficking ring and arrested 12 people including doctors and nurses from hospitals across the country. A…

Nigeria: Pentecostal Churches Complicit in Human Trafficking – OCCRP
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Nigeria: Pentecostal Churches Complicit in Human Trafficking – OCCRP

Throughout Nigeria, Pentecostal churches act as a gateway for criminal organizations to traffic young girls across Europe and coerce them into the world of prostitution, according to the Investigative Reporting Project Italy (IRPI). With more than 500 churches in the country—making them the largest community of Christians after Catholicism—the Pentecostals have established a widespread network…

HSI, IRS-CI Train German, Swiss Officials on Human Trafficking Investigative Techniques
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HSI, IRS-CI Train German, Swiss Officials on Human Trafficking Investigative Techniques

As the United Nations prepares to commemorate World Day Against Trafficking in Persons July 30, a team of U.S. federal investigators from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) are in Frankfurt, Germany, this week to train German law enforcement counterparts on the latest investigative techniques to combat human trafficking. U.S. Mission Germany hosted…

US Temporary Work Visas Expose Migrants to Exploitation, Labor Trafficking: Report
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US Temporary Work Visas Expose Migrants to Exploitation, Labor Trafficking: Report

A recent report has shed new light on how temporary work visa programs providing migrant laborers with employment in the United States are ripe for abuse, often leading to forced labor and other forms of human trafficking. Between January 2018 and December 2020, the Polaris Project’s National Human Trafficking Hotline identified almost 16,000 labor trafficking…