Organized crime
From Drug Rehab Wiki
Organized crime can be defined as a group of individuals who actively participate in unlawful activity for monetary gain. The most common illegal activities associated with organized crime include prostitution, gambling, extortion, theft, and drug trafficking.
When most individuals hear the term “organized crime,” images of the Sicilian mafia and/or “mafiosos” come to mind. Although “La Cosa Nostra”—the name for the Sicilian-born mafia—may be the most well-known organized crime unit, it is far from the only one. Ranging from the Russian mafia and the Japanese Yakuza to the Mexican and Colombian drug cartels, organized crime is prevalent worldwide. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) estimates that global organized crime brings in $1 trillion per year.
Organized crime made its first appearance in the western world during the time of pirates in the seventeenth century. The American style of organized crime as we know it began in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in urban areas. With the flood of immigrants moving to America during this time, neighborhoods were quite often settled by one dominant immigrant sect. With the high rate of immigrants who did not speak English and who were unfamiliar with the workings of the United States, organized crime units were able to flourish and dominate neighborhoods because they provided a false sense of security for its neighborhood residents.
Organized crime in the United States was a relatively small-scale organization during its early years and included many different players. However, this changed in the early 1920s when the 18th amendment banning alcohol, the Volstead Act, came into effect. Prohibition brought with it a highly profitable illegal market. It also caused many smaller crime organizations to link up, creating fewer yet more powerful criminal organizations.
Most modern-day criminal organizations work together as they’ve realized it is far more beneficial for business to work as one instead of in competition with one another. Criminal organizations will also resort to bribery, blackmail, and violence toward government officials, police officers, and union organizations if it will benefit their cause. More recently, these organizations have turned to identity theft and online extortion.
