Petrus C. van Duyne

Organized crime, corruption and power

The perception of organised crime as an external threat to political stability and integrity, as well as to orthodox commercial activity, is based on an assumption about the motives and intentions of organised criminals. It invariably results in a call for a ‘war against crime’. The reality and the possible solutions are less dramatic but also more complex. Organised criminals are concerned with both legal and illegal businesses where bribery of public officials and involvement with orthodox commercial activity are part of that business. While organised criminals may want to enjoy the profits of their business rather than subvert societies what they do and how they do it can have adverse consequences for societies and should be addressed. In seeking to do this, however, it is necessary not only to analyse threats to target resources more effectively but also discourage those public figures and orthodox businesses whose enthusiasm for short-term benefit overrides their moral judgement and thus allows organised crime to be tolerated within the societies to which they are supposed to be an external threat.

Money‐Laundering: Pavlov's Dog and Beyond

This article examines the phenomenon of money-laundering as a form of criminal money-management. It elaborates some of the pitfalls of the official approach as set out by the Financial Action Task Force report and the lost opportunities concerning understanding of the cross-border money-flows in north-western Europe. It describes the relationship between crime-money and the upperworld, questions the magnitude of the supposed financial infiltration and gives an example of a positive use of criminal funds. The final section discusses the role of the financial investigator.

Mobsters are human too: Behavioural science and organized crime investigation

The paper describes the organized criminal, and the fight against organized crime from a behavioural point of viiew. The author considers the organized criminal a crime-entrepreneur who has to operate in an enduring violent entrepreneurial landscape in which he has to cope with the problem of social information management. The article described how the police can add a social psychological approach to the traditional investgative methods. I provides some experience obtained in the Netherlands in which the psychologist assisted the crime squad during the investigation, trial preparation and trial. It argues in favour of a more analytical, hypothesis testing method in whch the behavioural scientist is integrated in the operational organized crimesquad instead of acting as an outside consultant.The paper describes the organized criminal, and the fight against organized crime from a behavioural point of viiew. The author considers the organized criminal a crime-entrepreneur who has to operate in an enduring violent entrepreneurial landscape in which he has to cope with the problem of social information management. The article described how the police can add a social psychological approach to the traditional investgative methods. I provides some experience obtained in the Netherlands in which the psychologist assisted the crime squad during the investigation, trial preparation and trial. It argues in favour of a more analytical, hypothesis testing method in whch the behavioural scientist is integrated in the operational organized crimesquad instead of acting as an outside consultant.

Hot money, hot stones and hot air: crime‐money threat, real estate and real concern

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to generally express concern about the threat of crime‐money to the real estate sector and the lack of evidence coming forward from research and law enforcement.Design/methodology/approach – In addition to a review of the literature, this research project analysed the confiscation database of the Dutch prosecution office. From this base, the real estate confiscations from 2000 onwards were selected and analysed. The database management of the prosecution office proved to be extremely negligent.Findings – The results could not substantiate the general concern that the crime‐money from the “underworld” was a real threat to the real estate market. Criminals did spend money on buying houses, sometimes big villas and a few of them had more property which was let. But this small financial criminal elite was widely spread over time and space.Research limitations/implications – This research has to be continued on a cross‐country comparative basis, for which the first steps ...

Searching for corruption in Serbia

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a description of the state of corruption in Serbia, based on available empirical evidence produced by the penal law‐enforcement agencies themselves.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses an analysis of available documents, criminal cases of the Municipal Court of Belgrade, data from the Public Prosecution Office and the National Statistical Bureau. Given the scarcity of research in Serbia, the usual inaccessibility of judicial sources, the study is a first reconnaissance based on what is available at present.Findings – The basic finding is a huge gap between what the people experience about corruption and what is eventually prosecuted. The law‐enforcement agencies address this phenomenon haphazardly and in a fragmented manner, displaying a fundamental lack of data management, resulting in lack of transparency.Research limitations/implications – Research in such a sensitive area and within a political culture of opacity, addressing incomplete data, wi...

The Monty Python Flying Circus of Money Laundering and the Question of Proportionality

This chapter explores the approach to AML, mapping its evolution from the US and the war on drugs in the early 1980s through to the establishment of the FATF and global regulatory framework that we have in place today. We unpick the figures behind the threat narrative and the size of the money laundering problem, highlighting the lack of clarity over what is or is not being counted. Drawing data from the mutual evaluation process and its associated costs, we expose that the severity of the existing anti-money laundering policy fails the basic test of proportionality.

A ‘Risky’ Risk Approach: Proportionality in ML/TF Regulation

Proportionality matters in the relationship between the government and the public. Though it is not operationalised, it evolves alongside political and legislative developments. However, in the field of money laundering, it is questionable whether this principle is met. A review of the Regulatory Impact Assessments for UK Money Laundering Regulations in 1993 and 2001 showed costs to be significantly understated and benefits unquantified, merely promising sweeping protections for society. This way of dealing with proportionality to justify enhanced measures reduces it to an empty formula. We are of the opinion that the proportionality principle is too important to be ignored, especially in the (global) anti-money laundering (AML) policy which since 2001 additionally encompasses the financing of terrorism. This regime has now been made more targeted by the new risk-based approach. The question is whether this approach has achieved the right proportionality.

5 Money, Art, and Laundering: Coming to Grips with the Risks

This chapter examines some general problems regarding the research on art, crime, and money laundering. In the literature on organized crime and money laundering, art hardly plays a role. First of all, compared to other criminological fields, research on organized crime is of relative minor interest to criminologists, despite the high-level political interest. Second, databases that register art in connection to crime often deal with stolen objects. Third, the concepts of art and money laundering give rise to misunderstandings, as their definitions are anything but unambiguous. According to the interviewed dealers, important transactions are done by using bank accounts. And if a bank account holds criminal gains in the first place, it is not the art sector that is to be blamed for that. The chapter concludes that the criminal proceeds are hardly ever laundered by using art and antiquities. Keywords: antiquities; art; criminologists; money laundering; organized crime; stolen objects