The Crime Book

134

T

he FBI defines organized

crime as a category of

crime perpetrated by a

group of people with a formal

structure whose primary purpose

is to obtain money through illegal

activities. Such groups use violence,

graft, and extortion to maintain

their position, often bribing corrupt

public officials to turn a blind eye or

even lend their support.

Organized crime can be both

a local issue or a worldwide

phenomenon. In the late 1800s,

Butch Cassidy’s Wild Bunch,

derided as two-bit outlaws by the

lawmen they eluded for so long, was

perhaps the most successful train-

robbing gang in US history. At the

other end of the scale are crime

syndicates whose tentacles spread

across the world, such as Japan’s

Yakuza, and the Sicilian Mafia.

Marginal groups

Crime groups often start out on

the fringes of societies. The Triads

were originally anti-Qing Dynasty

revolutionaries who arose in

19th-century China; the Italian Cosa

Nostra and its American offshoots

evolved in the rural backwaters

of Sicily; and the Hells Angels

Motorcycle Club, which formed

after World War II, mainly included

disaffected war veterans. These

organizations thrive on unlawful

activities, such as drug trafficking,

prostitution, moneylending,

gambling, and labour racketeering.

The American sociologist

Robert Merton believed that

individuals turned to organized

crime when they were unable to

obtain society’s goals through

socially accepted means because

of class hatred and poverty. It is no

coincidence that cocaine cartels

emerged from the impoverished

city of Medellín in Colombia, or

that the Kray brothers and the

Richardson crime family stemmed

from deprived parts of south

London. Modern Triad branches

took root in the poorest areas of

Hong Kong and Macau.

In many cases, such individuals

have been blocked by racial

prejudice. Prohibition-era mobs

were largely made up of Italians,

Jews, and the Irish, while 30 per

cent of Yakuza are Japanese-born

Koreans, who face persistent

discrimination. The crack cocaine

epidemic was fuelled by African

American street gangs. “Freeway”

Rick Ross, who was illiterate and

unable to land a job in 1980s’ Los

Angeles, built a multimillion-dollar

empire selling crack cocaine.

INTRODUCTION

1735 – 49

1761

MID-18 0 0s

1889 –1908

Mafia activity begins on

the island of Sicily in the

form of citrus fruit

protection rackets.

Butch Cassidy’s Wild

Bunch holds up trains

across the western states of

the US. The outlaws are

wanted “dead or alive”.

The Heaven and Earth Society,

the precursor to the Chinese

Triads, forms in Manchuria in

southeastern China.

A smuggling ring

known as the

Hawkhurst Gang

plagues towns and

villages in the

southeast of England.

1923–29

During Prohibition in

Chicago, the Beer

Wars break out

between rival

bootlegging gangs.

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135

Perhaps the strongest allure of

organized crime is that the groups

provide a sense of kinship to

individuals estranged from their

families or otherwise alienated

f rom societ y.

Underground activities

Some organized crime gangs have

been glamorized by the public,

especially groups operating in the

dim and distant past, such as

during the Prohibition in 1920s’

America. Fast-forward to the street

gangs of the 1980s and 1990s –

who wreaked havoc on many poor

communities with drive-by

shootings, burglaries, vehicle

thefts, and drug sales – and the

public’s attitude is less benign.

Sophisticated criminal groups

became adept at operating under

the radar and garnering public

support as benevolent outlaws.

Using both a populist platform and

his savvy political manoeuvring,

the “King of Cocaine” Pablo

Escobar even managed to win

election to Colombia’s Chamber

of Representatives.

The Yakuza and the Triads have

infiltrated white-collar positions all

over Asia, from the most powerful

corporations to the civil service and

judiciary. However, unlike Pablo

Escobar, who operated in the public

spotlight, these groups have been

successful precisely because of

their ability to work behind the

scenes, causing them to become

almost invisible.

Until the last quarter of the

20th century, the Sicilian Mafia

flourished by obscuring the fact

that they were a highly organized

criminal syndicate through the

notion that mainland Italy simply

did not understand the nuances

of Sicilian culture.

Hells Angels and other biker

clubs attempt to market themselves

as rowdy but ultimately harmless

throwbacks to an era of personal

freedom exemplified by groups

such as the Wild Bunch. In doing

so, these groups exploit a collective,

often misplaced nostalgia for a less

centralized world.

Mobsters often associated with

pop icons, such as crooner Frank

Sinatra and the American Mafia,

which helped to legitimize them.

After all, they could not be such

bad people, could they, if they

socialized with such respected

stars? For these organized crime

groups, who were attempting to

disguise what was actually going

on, the ruse worked. ■

ORGANIZED CRIME

1972

The Krays and the

Richardsons – rival

gangs – rule the criminal

underworld in the East

End of London.

In Los Angeles,

“Freeway” Rick Ross

creates a multimillion-

dollar market dealing

crack cocaine.

The Hells Angels emerge

in San Bernadino, California,

and spread all over the world,

fighting rival gangs and

trafficking narcotics.

The Medellín Cartel begins its

operations in Colombia and uses

extreme violence to monopolize

the cocaine trade and

undermine the government.

In Japan, Kazuo Taoka

becomes the boss of the

Yamaguchi-gumi Yakuza

crime syndicate and

becomes known as the

“godfather of godfathers”.

1946

1948

1960 s 1980–95

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