ORGANIZED CRIME INVESTIGATION

ORGANIZED CRIME

 A complex set of people and functions interrelated in hierarchical structure specifically for the purpose of attaining
set goals.

 A system of crime in which a group of individuals create and maintain a corporate-like organization, its members
having individually-recognized responsibilities and obligations.

 The crimes in the modern world represent the latest and the most dangerous manifestations of the something-for-
nothing complex problems of society and this includes ORGANIZED CRIMES.

 Organized crime or criminal organizations is a transnational grouping of highly centralized enterprises run by
criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for the purpose of generating a monetary
profit.

 A criminal activity by an enduring structure or organization developed and devoted primarily to the pursuit of
profits through illegal means.

 It is sometimes referred to as the MOB, MAFIA, SYNDICATE or the COSA NOSTRA which are known as the
ENEMY WITHIN, THE SECOND GOVERNMENT, THE FIFTH STATE OR CRIME CONFEDERATION.

 COSA NOSTRA-Literally – “ONE THING”

 Use to signify organized crimes.

Organized crime is a nonideological enterprise involving a number of persons in close social interaction, organized on
a hierarchical basis, with at least three levels/ranks, for the purpose of securing profit and power by engaging in illegal
and legal activities.

Positions in the hierarchy and positions involving functional specialization may be assigned on the basis of kinship or
friendship, or rationally assigned according to skill. The positions are not dependent on the individuals occupying them
at any particular time.

Permanency is assumed by the members who strive to keep the enterprise integral and active in pursuit of its goals.
It eschews competition and strives for monopoly on an industry or territorial basis. There is a willingness to use
violence and/or bribery to achieve ends or to maintain discipline. Membership is restricted, although nonmembers
may be involved on a contingency basis. There are explicit rules, oral or written, which are enforced by sanctions that
include murder. (Abadinsky, 1990: 6)

Although there is no generally accepted definition of orgnaized crime - indeed, the federal Organized Crime Control
Act of 1970 fails to define organized crime (...) - a number of attributes have been identified by law enforcement
agencies and researchers as indicative of the phenomenon. Offering these attributes has a practical dimension: the
attributes provide a basis for determining if a particular group of criminals constitutes organized crime and, therefore,
needs to be approached in a way different from the way one would approach terrorists or groups of conventional
criminals. Organized crime:
1. Has no political goals
2. Is hierarchical
3. Has a limited or exclusive membership
4. Constitutes a unique subculture
5. Perpetuates itself
6. Exhibits a willingness to use illegal violence
7. Is monopolistic
8. Is governed by explicit rules and regulations
(Abadinsky, 2010: 3)

OMERTA – the mafia’s code of secrecy and informal, unwritten code of organized crime, which demand silence and
loyalty among other thing, of family members.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

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The Boss oversees all organizational endeavors and has the final word on decisions involving virtually all aspects of
family business. Bosses are typically older members of the family who have proven their allegiance over a number of
years during their affiliation with the family.

The Consigliere is a close associate of the boss who enjoys a considerable amount of influence and status in the family,
serving the boss as a trusted advisor.

The Underboss works at the pleasure of the boss and acts in his behalf when the boss is incapacitated (e.g., sentenced to
prison, becomes ill, etc.).

Underbosses are also trusted, older members of the family whose primary role is to relay instructions to those occupying
lower positions in the family.

The Capos are a sort of mid-level manager. One of the primary roles of the capo is to serve as a buffer between the
lowest level members and the upper level members of the family. In doing so, the capo is the trusted go-between through
which all communications flow from the boss to the lowest-level members.

Soldiers are lowest level members of the family, also known as "wise guys," "made guys" or "button men," who report
directly to the capo and will often operate at least one specific criminal enterprise.

The Commission links the most powerful Mafia bosses to one central authoritative body. Commission members are
bosses from families in New York, Buffalo, Chicago, and Philadelphia. The purpose of the commission is to arbitrate
disputes between families, approve new members for initiation, authorize the execution of family members, facilitate joint
ventures between families, and manage relations between American and Sicilian Mafia factions.

Also operating in behalf of the family are specialists: enforcers; informants who warn about criminal investigations,
impending raids; and, corrupters, who pay control agents (corruptees) and help ensure immunity for the organization and
its members (Cressey, 1969, Hess, 1973).

ORGANIZED SYNDICATED GROUP

 A profit-motivated, and highly-capable group of persons or an enterprise, organized to undertake widespread,

regular or long-term, large-scale, high-profile and diversified criminal activities that has impact to the economy and
national security.

CRIMINAL GANG
 A group of two or more persons who have a common identifying signs/symbols, and whose members, individually
or collectively, engage in or have a pattern of criminal activity, creating an atmosphere of fear and intimidation
within the community or a specific area, using violence and intimidation.

TRADTIONAL NOTIONS ABOUT ORGANIZED CRIME

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1. A series of interconnected mutually beneficial relationships to further criminal activities so that money and power can be
maximized to every extent possible. Material gain is the primary goal of the operations.

2. Consists of an enforced hierarchical structure, in which efforts are directed toward conspiratorial activities of an ongoing
nature. Involves the coordination of an organizational structure and associated personnel. Utilizes effective means of
controlling and disciplining its members.

3. Involved in a number of profit making operations, from basic illegal “business” activities such as gambling, prostitution,
adult entertainment, to more complex activities such as money laundering and computer crimes.

4. Various levels of the threat of violence to actual violence are employed in order to ensure objectives are obtained.

5. Organized crime is not to be confused with terrorist activities, for which the goal of action is primarily political in nature.
However, the types of crimes committed, organizational structure and tactics against others may be similar in nature.

6. Serious effort is directed toward organizational maintenance, cash flow, personnel discipline and ongoing “business”
operations.

7. It seeks to be immune from the reaches of legitimate lawful authority.

8. Various activities generally include: gambling, loan sharking, drugs, prostitution, various forms of adult oriented
entrainment, extortion, bribery, embezzlement, fraud, fencing activities, union operations, auto theft, cargo theft, credit
card crimes, vending machines, trash collection and waste disposal, other smuggling activities, etc.

9. Key aspects: structure, profit continuity, monopoly, relative immunity, power and control

HOW THE ORGANIZED CRIME GROUPS WORKS?

For the organization to work, there must be:

A. An ENFORCER – One who makes arrangements for killing and injuring the members or non-members.

B. A CORRUPTER – One who bribes, buys, intimidates, threatens, negotiates and sweet talks into a relationship with the
police, public officials or any else who might help the members security and maintain immunity from arrest, prosecution
and punishment.

C. A CORRUPTEE - a public official, usually not a member of the organization family, who can wield influence on behalf
of the organization’s interest.

SOURCES OF ILLEGAL PROFIT

 Gains from gains from goods and services that are of great demand by the society but are prohibited by law.
 The range of activities in which organized crime groups are said to be involved is vast indeed. Traditionally, it has
been argued that these activities are of two major types. The first involves the distribution and sale of illicit goods
and services. Specifically such illicit enterprises might include prostitution, drugs, gambling, pornography, and
loan-sharking. Extortion, the other major form of activity, is undertaken as an end in itself or as the means to other
ends. These extortionate practices include various forms of business and labor racketeering and, it is argued, they
have often provided the point of entry by which organized crime groups "infiltrate" legitimate businesses. While
infiltration may in some cases be the appropriate word, in other cases, it obscures the role played by business
interests that knowingly engage with organized crime groups because they believe it is in their best interests to do
so. Such cases suggest collaboration rather than infiltration since the relationship is more symbiotic than parasitic.
Thus, a legitimate business might use the relationship with an organized crime group as a source of investment
capital while the organized crime group might view the relationship as an effective way to launder funds, diversify
risk, or achieve some level of public respectability.

 What illicit marketeering and extortion share in common, to some degree, is the potential for organization and
routinization. In all such cases, not only collaborators but also victims understand the nature of the relationships in
which they are involved. However, both groups may be unwilling to share the task of preventing or controlling the
prohibited conduct. This may be because of their own profit-sharing, in the case of collaborators, or because they
fear that such action could put them in danger, as in the case of victims.

 Other forms of activities associated with organized crime groups—such as the use of violence or political
corruption—must be understood in terms that stress the instrumental character of such practices. By definition,
the businesses of organized crime operate beyond the reach of law and therefore conflicts that arise among
participants cannot be resolved using the state-approved legal apparatus. Under such conditions, violence (and
more importantly the threat of violence) assume some significance as techniques of conflict resolution. In a
related way, organized crime groups need to be able to evade or to neutralize those state agencies charged with
their control. Traditionally, corruption has proven to be an important mechanism by which this task is
accomplished. As in the case of the infiltration of legitimate business, however, corruption is more often a form of
symbiotic relationship than a form of victimization.

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  By the 1980s and 1990s, policymakers and academics alike had begun to argue that it would be misleading to
think about organized crime activities in traditionally narrow terms. While various forms of extortion and
marketeering continued to be important income sources, organized crime had become much more sophisticated.
Of particular interest in this respect was the increasingly important role that criminal associations were thought to
play in various financial markets. In the late 1990s, for instance, it was claimed that organized crime groups
owned or controlled several New York brokerage firms.

 During this period, attention also focused on the crime of money laundering. As cash businesses, drug trafficking,
gambling, and other organized crimes generate huge amounts of money that is vulnerable to seizure by state
authorities. The movement of these funds through international money markets not only launders the money but
also in many cases extends criminal enterprises and facilitates corruption and bribery. It has been estimated that
over $750 billion in illicit funds is laundered worldwide annually of which $300 billion is laundered through the
United States.

CHARACTERISTICS OF ORGANIZED CRIMES

1. It is a conspiracy activity involving coordination of members.
2. Economic gain is the primary goal.
3. Economic gain is achieved through illegal means.
4. Employs predatory tactics such as intimidation, violence and corruption.
5. Effective control over members, associates, and victims.
6. Organized crime does not include terrorist dedicated to political change.
GENERIC TYPES OF ORGANIZED CRIMES
1. POLITICAL GRAFT – manned by political criminals who use force or violence of a means to obtain profit or
gain or achieving political aim. E.g. vote buying, private armies
2. THE MERCENARY/PREDATORY O.C. – crimes committed by groups for direct personal profit but they prey
upon unwilling victims.
3. IN-GROUP ORIENTED O.C. –groups manned by semi – organized individuals whose major goals are for
psychological gratification such as adolescent gangs.
4. SYNDICATED CRIME – illicit activity through use of force, threat and intimidation.

ESSENTIAL COMPOSITION OF ORGANIZED CRIME

PROFESSIONAL CRIMES – refers to occupations or their incumbents which possesses various traits including
useful knowledge that requires lengthy training, service orientation and code of ethics that permits occupations to
attempt to obtain autonomy and independence with high prestige and remuneration.

CHARACTERISITICS OF PROFESSIONAL CRIMES

1. Crime is a sole means of livelihood.
2. Careful planning, and reliance upon technical skills and methods.
3. Offenders are of migratory life style.
4. The groups have shared sense of belongingness, rules, codes of behavior and mutual specialized language.

WHITE COLLAR CRIMES

Committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his/her occupation.
FORMS OF WHITE COLLAR CRIMES
1. Corporate crimes – violation of a corporate statute either by a corporate entity or by its executives, employees
or agents, acting on behalf of and for the benefit of the corporation, partnership or other business entity.
2. Environmental crimes – damage some protected or otherwise significant aspect of the natural environment.
3. Occupational crimes – any act punishable by law which is committed through opportunity created in the course
of an occupation that is legal.

Occupational Crime Classification

1. Organizational – crimes committed for the benefit for the entire organization in such instances only the
organization/employer and not individual employees.
2. State authority – crimes by officials through the exercise of their state based authority.
3. Professional – crimes by professionals in their capacity as professionals.
4. Individual – by individuals…employees

Occupational crimes also refer to:

1. White collar crime
2. Avocational – does not think of himself as a criminal
3. Corporate
4. Economic-deciet,misrepresentation, concealment
5. Organizational - seriously harm employees/general public
6. Upper-world crime – due to positions

CATEGORIES OF ORGANIZED CRIME BEHAVIOR

FIVE LEVELS OF ORGANIZATION

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The five levels of organization are (1) the criminal group, (2) the protectors, (3) specialized support, (4) user support,
and (5) social support.

The criminal group represents the criminal core of organized crime.

Protectors include corrupt public officials, business people, judges, attorneys, financial advisers, and others who protect
the interests of the criminal group.

Specialized support includes persons who provide contract services that facilitate organized crime activities, such as
pilots, chemists, arsonists, and smugglers.

User support provides the criminal group with their consumer market: persons who purchase organized crime's illegal
goods and services, such as drug users, patrons of bookmakers and prostitution rings, and people who knowingly
purchase stolen goods.

Finally, social support involves persons and organizations who create a perception of legitimacy for organized crime.
Examples include politicians who solicit the support of organized crime figures, business leaders who do business with
organized crime, social and community leaders who invite organized crime figures to social gatherings, and those who
portray organized crime or its members in a favorable light.

MODELS OF ORGANIZED CRIME

The Alien Conspiracy Theory

One of the most common theories related to organized crime is the alien conspiracy theory. According to the Alien
Conspiracy theory, organized crime (the Mafia) gained prominence during the 1860s in Sicily and is currently made up of
25 or so Italian-dominated crime families, calling themselves the La Cosa Nostra. These families are comprised of
members known as "wise guys" or "made men" and are collectively about 1,700 members strong. Families are thought to
control well-defined geographic areas and specific criminal enterprises.

Cressey's Cosa Nostra Model

Donald Cressey (1967) describes a model of organized crime in which a rigid "bureaucratic" structure exists. The primary
unit of the Cosa Nostra is the family, which embodies male members of Italian ancestry. The family is protected by a code
of conduct for members which prohibits them from revealing organizational secrets and from which violations of the rule
can result in violence against the offender. Cressey has suggested that a hierarchy exists within the Mafia. Included in the
hierarchy are the following persons: the boss, the consigliere, the underboss, the caporegime, and the Soldiers The Boss
oversees all organizational endeavors and has the final word on decisions involving virtually all aspects of family
business. Bosses are typically older members of the family who have proven their allegiance over a number of years
during their affiliation with the family.

Albini’s "patron-client model"

Represented by the works of Joe Albini (1971) and Francis and Liz Ianni (1972), re-conceptualizes the Cosa Nostra as a
web of asymmetric ties embedded in local or ethnic networks. Consists of a series of patron-client relationships.Those
with the most power can provide the most service. Characterized by conflict.

Smith’s "enterprise model"

Proposed by Dwight C. Smith (1980), centers around economic activities and the primacy of market forces over group
structures. Dwight Smith (1990) criticizes Cressey's view of organized crime by suggesting that in understanding only
Italian-American crime families, one understands only
part of the problem - and not necessarily the most important part. Smith calls this the "Mafia mystique," which was
primarily created by the media and law enforcement agencies. Regarding the arrests and prosecutions of Italian
organized criminal.
Smith argues:
... we could almost sleep well, except for the two concurrent crime stories that command our attention: 1) our national
failure to control a drug trade in which the major traffickers are not Italian; and 2) the rise in exorbitant white-collar crimes,
either proven or still under investigation on Wall Street and the Defense industry.

Put them next to the Mafia and ask yourself: What is organized crime - really?
(Smith, 1990). Smith's view of organized crime is that it is merely a series of "enterprises" occurring along a spectrum of
legitimacy. "Illicit enterprise", or illegal businesses should be the focus of organized crime studies and research.

Ianni’s Kinship Group Model

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Chambliss’s Crime Network Model

Haller’s Partnership Model

Mark Haller concurs with the idea of organized crime as being a set of hierarchically organized gangs. This can be
expanded upon further by equating the gangs to separate firms in collusion with each other. He views joining a crime
syndicate as being similar to joining a college alumni association or the Chamber of Commerce. It is a way for
businessmen to network and make contacts that might help them in their future business endeavors, legal or not. Those
who are beginners look for more experienced mentors who might pass opportunities on to them while more mature
businessmen come to find reliable potential partners and to exchange vital information which can help them in future
business decisions.15 From an economic viewpoint, being a part of this exclusive society minimizes search costs (for
partners and possible business deals) and maximizes expected benefits from future market transactions for both the
established criminals and for the budding entrepreneur who wishes to be involved in an organized crime syndicate. For
the inexperienced, blood and ethnic ties, although beneficial, are no longer requirements.

SMALL SCALE, TRADITIONAL AND NON-TRADITIONAL OC

1. Small Scale Organized Crime – not affiliated with “traditional organized crime” families of the historical variety,
but remain as organized criminal groups.
2. Traditional Organized Crime – related to historical processes and inkages that reflect early immigration into
the U.S.;

3. Non-traditional Organized Crime – reflected in newer shifts and movements within the criminal element that
do not fit the “traditional organized crime” framework;

TERRORISM

Terrorism is not new, and even though it has been used since the beginning of recorded history it can be relatively hard to
define. Terrorism has been described variously as both a tactic and strategy; a crime and a holy duty; a justified reaction
to oppression and an inexcusable abomination. Obviously, a lot depends on whose point of view is being represented.
Terrorism has often been an effective tactic for the weaker side in a conflict. As an asymmetric form of conflict, it confers
coercive power with many of the advantages of military force at a fraction of the cost. Due to the secretive nature and
small size of terrorist organizations, they often offer opponents no clear organization to defend against or to deter.

Terrorism is an anxiety-inspiring method of repeated violent action, employed by (semi-) clandestine individual, group or
state actors, for idiosyncratic, criminal or political reasons, whereby - in contrast to assassination - the direct targets of
violence are not the main targets. The immediate human victims of violence are generally chosen randomly (targets of
opportunity) or selectively (representative or symbolic targets) from a target population, and serve as message
generators. Threat- and violence-based communication processes between terrorist (organization), (imperilled) victims,
and main targets are used to manipulate the main target (audience(s)), turning it into a target of terror, a target of
demands, or a target of attention, depending on whether intimidation, coercion, or propaganda is primarily sought"

Ethnic separatist violence in the 1930s provoked the League of Nations, formed after World War I to encourage world
stability and peace, to define terrorism for the first time, as:All criminal acts directed against a State and intended or
calculated to create a state of terror in the minds of particular persons or a group of persons or the general public.

The FBI defines terrorism as: The unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a
Government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives

Brian Jenkins’ definition of terrorism as translated by Dr. David Goldstein (2007): “The use or threatened use of force
designed to bring about political change.”

Some approaches to defining terrorism

Simple: Violence or threatened violence intended to produce fear or cause change.

Legal: Criminal violence violating legal codes and punishable by the state.

Analytical : A specific political and/or social factor behind individual violent acts.

State-sponsored: National or other groups used to attack Western or other vested interests.

State: Power of the government used to repress its people to the point of submission.

Early History of Terrorism

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Terror in Antiquity: 1st -14th Century AD
The earliest known organization that exhibited aspects of a modern terrorist organization was the Zealots of Judea.
Known to the Romans as sicarii, or dagger-men , they carried on an underground campaign of assassination of Roman
occupation forces, as well as any Jews they felt had collaborated with the Romans. Their motive was an uncompromising
belief that they could not remain faithful to the dictates of Judaism while living as Roman subjects. Eventually, the Zealot
revolt became open, and they were finally besieged and committed mass suicide at the fortification of Masada.

The Assassins were the next group to show recognizable characteristics of terrorism, as we know it today. A breakaway
faction of Shia Islam called the Nizari Ismalis adopted the tactic of assassination of enemy leaders because the cult's
limited manpower prevented open combat. Their leader, Hassam-I Sabbah, based the cult in the mountains of Northern
Iran. Their tactic of sending a lone assassin to successfully kill a key enemy leader at the certain sacrifice of his own life
(the killers waited next to their victims to be killed or captured) inspired fearful awe in their enemies.

Even though both the Zealots and the Assassins operated in antiquity, they are relevant today: First as forerunners of
modern terrorists in aspects of motivation, organization, targeting, and goals. Secondly, although both were ultimate
failures, the fact that they are remembered hundreds of years later, demonstrates the deep psychological impact they
caused.

Early Origins of Terrorism: 14th -18th Century

From the time of the Assassins (late 13th century) to the1700s, terror and barbarism were widely used in warfare and
conflict , but key ingredients for terrorism were lacking. Until the rise of the modern nation state after the Treaty of
Westphalia in 1648, the sort of central authority and cohesive society that terrorism attempts to influence barely existed.
Communications were inadequate and controlled, and the causes that might inspire terrorism (religious schism,
insurrection, ethnic strife) typically led to open warfare. By the time kingdoms and principalities became nations, they had
sufficient means to enforce their authority and suppress activities such as terrorism.

The French Revolution provided the first uses of the words "Terrorist" and "Terrorism". Use of the word "terrorism" began
in 1795 in reference to the Reign of Terror initiated by the Revolutionary government. The agents of the Committee of
Public Safety and the National Convention that enforced the policies of "The Terror" were referred to as 'Terrorists". The
French Revolution provided an example to future states in oppressing their populations. It also inspired a reaction by
royalists and other opponents of the Revolution who employed terrorist tactics such as assassination and intimidation in
resistance to the Revolutionary agents. The Parisian mobs played a critical role at key points before, during, and after the
Revolution. Such extra-legal activities as killing prominent officials and aristocrats in gruesome spectacles started long
before the guillotine was first used.

Entering the Modern Era: The 19th Century

During the late 19th century, radical political theories and improvements in weapons technology spurred the formation of
small groups of revolutionaries who effectively attacked nation-states. Anarchists espousing belief in the "propaganda of
the deed" produced some striking successes, assassinating heads of state from Russia, France, Spain, Italy, and the
United States. However, their lack of organization and refusal to cooperate with other social movements in political efforts
rendered anarchists ineffective as a political movement. In contrast, Communism's role as an ideological basis for political
terrorism was just beginning, and would become much more significant in the 20th century.

Another trend in the late 19th century was the increasing tide of nationalism throughout the world, in which the nation (the
identity of a people) and the political state were combined. As states began to emphasize national identities, peoples that
had been conquered or colonized could, like the Jews at the times of the Zealots, opt for assimilation or struggle. The
best-known nationalist conflict from this time is still unresolved - the multi-century struggle of Irish nationalism.
Nationalism, like communism, became a much greater ideological force in the 20th century.

The terrorist group from this period that serves as a model in many ways for what was to come was the Russian
Narodnya Volya (Peoples Will). They differed in some ways from modern terrorists, especially in that they would
sometimes call off attacks that might endanger individuals other than their intended target. Other than this quirk, we see
many of the traits of terrorism here for the first time; clandestine, cellular organization; impatience and inability for the task
of organizing the constituents they claim to represent; and a tendency to increase the level of violence as pressures on
the group mount.

Terrorism in the 20th and 21st Century

The Early 20th Century

The first half of the 20th century saw two events that influenced the nature of conflict to the present day. The effects of two
World Wars inflamed passions and hopes of nationalists throughout the world, and severely damaged the legitimacy of
the international order and governments.

Nationalism on the Rise

Nationalism intensified during the early 20th century throughout the world. It became an especially powerful force in the
subject peoples of various colonial empires. Although dissent and resistance were common in many colonial possessions,
and sometimes resulted in open warfare, nationalist identities became a focal point for these actions.

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Gradually, as nations became closely tied to concepts of race and ethnicity, international political developments began to
support such concepts. Members of ethnic groups whose states had been absorbed by others or had ceased to exist as
separate nations saw opportunities to realize nationalist ambitions. Several of these groups chose terror as a method to
conduct their struggle and make their situation known to world powers they hoped would be sympathetic. In Europe, both
the Irish and the Macedonians had existing terrorist campaigns as part of their ongoing struggle for independence, but
had to initiate bloody uprisings to further their cause. The Irish were partially successful, the Macedonians failed.

Damaged Legitimacy

The "total war" practices of all combatants of WWII provided further justification for the "everybody does it" view of the use
of terror and violations of the law of war. The desensitization of people and communities to violence that started in World
War I accelerated during World War II. The intensity of the conflict between starkly opposed ideologies led to excesses on
the part of all participants. New weapons and strategies that targeted the enemies' civilian population to destroy their
economic capacity for conflict exposed virtually every civilian to the hazards of combatants. The major powers' support of
partisan and resistance organizations using terrorist tactics was viewed as an acceptance of their legitimacy. It seemed
that civilians had become legitimate targets, despite any rules forbidding it.

Cold War Developments

The bi-polar world of the Cold War changed perception of conflicts the world over. Relatively minor confrontations took on
significance as arenas where the superpowers could compete without risking escalation to full nuclear war. Warfare
between the East and the West took place on the peripheries, and was limited in scope to prevent escalation. During the
immediate postwar period, terrorism was more of a tactical choice by leaders of nationalist insurgencies and revolutions.
Successful campaigns for independence from colonial rule occurred throughout the world, and many employed terrorism
as a supporting tactic. When terrorism was used, it was used within the framework of larger movements, and coordinated
with political, social, and military action. Even when terrorism came to dominate the other aspects of a nationalist struggle,
such as the Palestinian campaign against Israel, it was (and is) combined with other activities.

Throughout the Cold War, the Soviet Union provided direct and indirect assistance to revolutionary movements around
the world. Many anti-colonial movements found the revolutionary extremism of communism attractive. Leaders of these
"wars of national liberation" saw the advantage of free weapons and training. They also realized that the assistance and
patronage of the Eastern Bloc meant increased international legitimacy. Many of these organizations and individuals
utilized terrorism in support of their political and military objectives. The policy of the Soviet Union to support revolutionary
struggles everywhere, and to export revolution to non-communist countries, provided extremists willing to employ violence
and terror as the means to realize their ambitions.

The Internationalization of Terror

The age of modern terrorism might be said to have begun in 1968 when the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
(PFLP) hijacked an El Al airliner en route from Tel Aviv to Rome. While hijackings of airliners had occurred before, this
was the first time that the nationality of the carrier (Israeli) and its symbolic value was a specific operational aim. Also a
first was the deliberate use of the passengers as hostages for demands made publicly against the Israeli government. The
combination of these unique events, added to the international scope of the operation, gained significant media attention.
The founder of PFLP, Dr. George Habash observed that the level of coverage was tremendously greater than battles with
Israeli soldiers in their previous area of operations. "At least the world is talking about us now."

Another aspect of this internationalization is the cooperation between extremist organizations in conducting terrorist
operations. Cooperative training between Palestinian groups and European radicals started as early as 1970, and joint
operations between the PFLP and the Japanese Red Army (JRA) began in 1974. Since then international terrorist
cooperation in training, operations, and support has continued to grow, and continues to this day. Motives range from the
ideological, such as the 1980s alliance of the Western European Marxist-oriented groups, to financial, as when the IRA
exported its expertise in bomb making as far afield as Colombia

Current State of Terrorism

The largest act of international terrorism occured on September 11, 2001 in a set of co-ordinated attacks on the United
States of America where Islamic terrorists hijacked civilian airliners and used them to attack the World Trade Center
towers in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, DC. Other major terrorist attacks have also occured in New
Delhi (Indian Parliament attacked); Bali car bomb attack; London subway bombings; Madrid train bombings and the most
recent attacks in Mumbai (hotels, train station and a Jewish outreach center). The operational and strategic epicenter of
Islamic terrorism is now mostly centred in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Terrorist Behavior

There is clearly a wide choice of definitions for terrorism. Despite this, there are elements in common among the majority
of useful definitions. Common threads of the various definitions identify terrorism as:

• Political
• Psychological
• Coercive

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• Dynamic
• Deliberate

Political
A terrorist act is a political act or is committed with the intention to cause a political effect. Clausewitz' statement that "war
is a continuation of policy by other means" is taken as a truism by terrorists. They merely eliminate the intermediate step
of armies and warfare, and apply violence directly to the political contest.

Psychological
The intended results of terrorist acts cause a psychological effect ("terror"). They are aimed at a target audience other
than the actual victims of the act. The intended target audience of the terrorist act may be the population as a whole,
some specific portion of a society (an ethnic minority, for example), or decision-making elites in the society's political,
social, or military populace.

Coercive
Violence and destruction are used in the commission of the act to produce the desired effect. Even if casualties or
destruction are not the result of a terrorist operation, the threat or potential of violence is what produces the intended
effect. For example, a successful hostage taking operation may result in all hostages being freed unharmed after
negotiations and bargaining. Regardless of the outcome, the terrorist bargaining chips were nothing less than the raw
threat of applying violence to maim or kill some or all of the hostages. When the threat of violence is not credible, or the
terrorists are unable to implement violence effectively, terrorism fails.

Dynamic
Terrorist groups demand change, revolution, or political movement. The radical worldview that justifies terrorism
mandates drastic action to destroy or alter the status quo. Even if the goals of a movement are reactionary in nature, they
require action to "turn back the clock" or restore some cherished value system that is extinct. Nobody commits violent
attacks on strangers or innocents to keep things "just the way they are."

Deliberate
Terrorism is an activity planned and intended to achieve particular goals. It is a rationally employed, specifically selected
tactic, and is not a random act. Since the victims of terrorist violence are often of little import, with one being as good for
the terrorists' purposes as another, victim or target selection can appear random or unprovoked. But the target will contain
symbolic value or be capable of eliciting emotional response according to the terrorists' goals. Remember that the actual
target of terrorism is not the victim of the violence, but the psychological balance

Media Exploitation
Terrorism's effects are not necessarily aimed at the victims of terrorist violence. Victims are usually objects to be exploited
by the terrorists for their effect on a third party. In order to produce this effect, information of the attack must reach the
target audience. So any terrorist organization plans for exploitation of available media to get the message to the right
audiences. Victims are simply the first medium that transmits the psychological impact to the larger target audience. The
next step in transmission will depend on what media is available, but it will be planned, and it will frequently be the
responsibility of a specific organization within the terrorist group to do nothing else but exploit and control the news cycle.

Some organizations can rely on friendly or sympathetic news outlets, but this is not necessary. News media can be
manipulated by planning around the demands of the "news cycle", and the advantage that control of the initiative gives the
terrorist. Pressures to report quickly, to "scoop" competitors, allow terrorists to present claims or make statements that
might be refuted or critically commented on if time were available. Terrorists often provide names and details of individual
victims to control the news media through its desire to humanize or personalize a story. For the victims of a terrorist
attack, it is a certainty that the impact on the survivors (if there are any) is of minimal importance to the terrorists. What is
important is the intended psychological impact that the news of their death or suffering will cause in a wider audience.

Operations in Permissive Societies

Terrorists conduct more operations in societies where individual rights and civil legal protections prevail. While terrorists
may base themselves in repressive regimes that are sympathetic to them, they usually avoid repressive governments
when conducting operations wherever possible. An exception to this case is a repressive regime that does not have the
means to enforce security measures. Governments with effective security forces and few guaranteed civil liberties have
typically suffered much less from terrorism than liberal states with excellent security forces. Al Qaeda has shown,
however, that they will conduct operations anywhere.

Illegality of Methods
Terrorism is a criminal act. Whether the terrorist chooses to identify himself with military terminology (as discussed under
insurgencies below), or with civilian imagery ("brotherhood", "committee", etc.), he is a criminal in both spheres. The
violations of civil criminal laws are self-evident in activities such as murder, arson, and kidnapping regardless of the
legitimacy of the government enforcing the laws. Victimizing the innocent is criminal injustice under a dictatorship or a
democracy. If the terrorist claims that he is justified in using such violence as a military combatant, he is a de facto war
criminal under international law and the military justice systems of most nations.

Preparation and Support

It's important to understand that actual terrorist operations are the result of extensive preparation and support operations.
Media reporting and academic study have mainly focused on the terrorists' goals and actions, which is precisely what the
9
terrorist intends. This neglects the vital but less exciting topic of preparation and support operations. Significant effort and
coordination is required to finance group operations, procure or manufacture weapons, conduct target surveillance and
analysis, and deliver trained terrorists to the operational area. While the time and effort expended by the terrorists may be
a drop in the bucket compared to the amounts spent to defend against them, terrorist operations can still involve large
amounts of money and groups of people. The need for dedicated support activities and resources on simple operations
are significant, and get larger the greater the sophistication of the plan and the complexity of the target.

COMMON TERRORIST QUALITIES

1. They must believe passionately in the justness of their cause.

2. They must possess a killer instinct.
3. They must possess an ability to act effectively as loners.
4. They must have a very high degree of physical courage

TYPES OF TERRORIST INCIDENTS

Bombings
Bombings are the most common type of terrorist act. Typically, improvised explosive devices are inexpensive and easy to
make. Modern devices are smaller and are harder to detect. They contain very destructive capabilities; for example, on
August 7, 1998, two American embassies in Africa were bombed. The bombings claimed the lives of over 200 people,
including 12 innocent American citizens, and injured over 5,000 civilians. Terrorists can also use materials that are readily
available to the average consumer to construct a bomb.

Kidnappings and Hostage-Takings

Terrorists use kidnapping and hostage-taking to establish a bargaining position and to elicit publicity. Kidnapping is one of
the most difficult acts for a terrorist group to accomplish, but, if a kidnapping is successful, it can gain terrorists money,
release of jailed comrades, and publicity for an extended period. Hostage-taking involves the seizure of a facility or
location and the taking of hostages. Unlike a kidnapping, hostage-taking provokes a confrontation with authorities. It
forces authorities to either make dramatic decisions or to comply with the terrorist’s de- mands. It is overt and designed to
attract and hold media attention. The terrorists’ intended target is the audience affected by the hostage’s confinement, not
the hostage.

Armed Attacks and Assassinations

Armed attacks include raids and ambushes. Assassinations are the killing of a selected victim, usually by bombings or
small arms. Drive-by shootings is a common technique employed by unsophisticated or loosely organized terrorist groups.
Historically, terrorists have assassinated specific individuals for psychological effect.

Arsons and Firebombings

Incendiary devices are cheap and easy to hide. Arson and firebombings are easily conducted by terrorist groups that may
not be as well-organized, equipped, or trained as a major terrorist organization. An arson or firebombing against a utility,
hotel, government building, or industrial center portrays an image that the ruling government is incapable of maintaining
order.

Hijackings and Skyjackings

Hijacking is the seizure by force of a surface vehicle, its passengers, and/or its cargo. Skyjacking is the taking of an
aircraft, which creates a mobile, hostage barricade situation. It provides terrorists with hostages from many nations and
draws heavy media attention. Skyjacking also provides mobility for the terrorists to relocate the aircraft to a country that
supports their cause and provides them with a human shield, making retaliation difficult.

Other Types of Terrorist Incidents

In addition to the acts of violence discussed above, there are also numerous other types of violence that can exist under
the framework of terrorism. Terrorist groups conduct maimings against their own people as a form of punishment for
security violations, defections, or informing. Terrorist organizations also conduct robberies and extortion when they need
to finance their acts and they don’t have sponsorship from sympathetic nations. Cyberterrorism is a new form of terrorism
that is ever increasing as we rely on computer networks to relay information and provide connectivity to today’s modern
and fast-paced world. Cyberterrorism allows terrorists to conduct their operations with little or no risk to themselves. It also
provides terrorists an opportunity to disrupt or destroy networks and computers. The result is interruption of key
government or business-related activities. This type of terrorism isn’t as high profile as other types of terrorist attacks, but
its impact is just as destructive.

Historically, terrorist attacks using nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) weapons have been rare. Due the extremely
high number of casualties that NBC weapons produce, they are also referred to as weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
However, a number of nations are involved in arms races with neighboring countries be- cause they view the development
of WMD as a key de- terrent of attack by hostile neighbors. The increased development of WMD also increases the
potential for terrorist groups to gain access to WMD. It is believed that in the future terrorists will have greater access to
WMD because unstable nations or states may fail to safeguard their stockpiles of WMD from accidental losses, illicit

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sales, or outright theft or seizure. Determined terrorist groups can also gain access to WMD through covert independent
research efforts or by hiring technically skilled professionals to construct the WMD.

TERRORIST GROUPS

There are two general categories of organization; hierarchical and networked. The age of an organization is one of the
determinants of whether it is likely to adopt a network or hierarchical structure. Newer groups tend towards organizing or
adapting to the possibilities inherent in the network model. Ideology can have an effect on internal organization, with strict
Leninist or Maoist groups tending towards centralized control and hierarchical structure. Within the larger structure,
virtually all groups use variants of cellular organizations at the tactical level to enhance security and to task organize for
operations.

CATEGORIES OF TERRORIST GROUPS

Separatist. Separatist groups are those with the goal of separation from existing entities through independence, political
autonomy, or religious freedom or domination. The ideologies separatists subscribe to include social justice or equity, anti-
imperialism, as well as the resistance to conquest or occupation by a foreign power.

Ethnocentric. Groups of this persuasion see race as the defining characteristic of a society, and therefore a basis of
cohesion. There is usually the attitude that a particular group is superior because of their inherent racial characteristics.

Nationalistic. The loyalty and devotion to a nation, and the national consciousness derived from placing one nation's
culture and interests above those of other nations or groups. This can find expression in the creation of a new nation, or in
splitting away part of an existing state to join with another that shares the perceived "national" identity.

Revolutionary. Dedicated to the overthrow of an established order and replacing it with a new political or social structure.
Although often associated with communist political ideologies, this is not always the case, and other political movements
can advocate revolutionary methods to achieve their goals.

Political. Political ideologies are concerned with the structure and organization of the forms of government and
communities. While observers outside terrorist organizations may stress differences in political ideology, the activities of
groups that are diametrically opposed on the political spectrum are similar to each other in practice.

Religious. Religiously inspired terrorism is on the rise, with a forty-three percent increase of total international terror
groups espousing religious motivation between 1980 and 1995. While Islamic terrorists and organizations have been the
most active, and the greatest recent threat to the United States, all of the major world religions have extremists that have
taken up violence to further their perceived religious goals. Religiously motivated terrorists see their objectives as holy
writ, and therefore infallible and non-negotiable

Social. Often particular social policies or issues will be so contentious that they will incite extremist behavior and terrorism.
Frequently this is referred to as "single issue" or "special interest" terrorism. Some issues that have produced terrorist
activities in the United States and other countries include animal rights, abortion, ecology/environment, and minority
rights.

Domestic. These terrorists are "home-grown" and operate within and against their home country. They are frequently tied
to extreme social or political factions within a particular society, and focus their efforts specifically on their nation's socio-
political arena.

International or Transnational. Often describing the support and operational reach of a group, these terms are often
loosely defined, and can be applied to widely different capabilities. International groups typically operate in multiple
countries, but retain a geographic focus for their activities. Hezbollah has cells worldwide, and has conducted operations
in multiple countries, but is primarily concerned with events in Lebanon and Israel.

Transnational groups operate internationally, but are not tied to a particular country, or even region. Al Qaeda is
transnational; being made up of many nationalities, having been based out of multiple countries simultaneously, and
conducting operations throughout the world. Their objectives affect dozens of countries with differing political systems,
religions, ethnic compositions, and national interests

Terrorism(as per RA 9372 Human Security Act of 2007)

Any person who commits an act punishable under any of the following provisions of the Revised Penal Code:

1. Article 122 (Piracy in General and Mutiny in the High Seas or in the Philippine Waters);
2. Article 134 (Rebellion or Insurrection);
3. Article 134-a (Coup d‘Etat), including acts committed by private persons;
4. Article 248 (Murder);
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5. Article 267 (Kidnapping and Serious Illegal Detention);
6. Article 324 (Crimes Involving Destruction, or under

1. Presidential Decree No. 1613 (The Law on Arson);

2. Republic Act No. 6969 (Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Waste Control Act of 1990);
3. Republic Act No. 5207, (Atomic Energy Regulatory and Liability Act of 1968);
4. Republic Act No. 6235 (Anti-Hijacking Law);
5. Presidential Decree No. 532 (Anti-piracy and Anti-highway Robbery Law of 1974); and,
6. Presidential Decree No. 1866, as amended (Decree Codifying the Laws on Illegal and Unlawful Possession,
Manufacture, Dealing in, Acquisition or Disposition of Firearms, Ammunitions or Explosives)

thereby sowing and creating a condition of widespread and extraordinary fear and panic among the populace, in order to
coerce the government to give in to an unlawful demand shall be guilty of the crime of terrorism and shall suffer the
penalty of forty (40) years of imprisonment, without the benefit of parole as provided for under Act No. 4103, otherwise
known as the Indeterminate Sentence Law, as amended.

CYBER CRIMES

When the Internet was developed, the founding fathers of Internet hardly had any inclination the Internet could also
be misused for criminal activities.

Today, there are many disturbing things happening in cyberspace. Cybercrime refers to all the activities done with
criminal intent in cyberspace. These could be either the criminal activities in the conventional sense or could be
activities, newly evolved with the growth of the new medium. Because of the anonymous nature of the Internet, it
is possible to engage into a variety of criminal activities with impunity and people with intelligence, have been
grossly misusing this aspect of the Internet to perpetrate criminal activities in cyberspace.

The field of Cybercrime is just emerging and new forms of criminal activities in cyberspace are coming to the forefront
with the passing of each new day.

1. The LOVE BUG

“THE INTERNET IS SUPPOSED TO BE FREE FOR THE ENJOYMENT AND USE OF EVERYBODY”
By far the most popular incidence of cyber crime in the Philippines is the “ILOVEYOU Virus“ or the LOVE BUG. The
suspect in the case, a 23-year old student from a popular computer university in the Philippines drafted the virus with
the vision of creating a program that is capable of stealing passwords in computers, ultimately to have free access to
the internet.

During the height of the LOVE BUG incident, Reuters has reported: "The Philippines has yet to arrest the suspected
creator of the 'Love Bug' computer virus because it lacks laws that deal with computer crime, a senior police officer
said". The fact of the matter is that there are no laws relating to Cybercrime in the Philippines. The National Bureau of
Investigation is finding it difficult to legally arrest the suspect behind the 'Love Bug' computer virus.

As such, the need for countries to legislate Cyberlaws relating to Cybercrime arises on an urgent priority basis. Due to
the incident, the Philippines has seen the necessity for the passage of a law to penalize cyber crimes, thus the
enactment of Republic Act 8792 otherwise known as the Electronic Commerce Act.

2. Penal provisions of The Electronic Commerce Act (R.A. 8792)

Sec. 33. Penalties. - The following Acts shall be penalized by fine and or imprisonment, as follows:
Hacking or cracking which refers to unauthorized access into or interference in a computer system/server or
information and communication system; or any access in order to corrupt, alter, steal, or destroy using a computer or
other similar information and communication devices, without the knowledge and consent of the owner of the
computer or information & communications system, including the introduction of computer viruses and the like,
resulting in the corruption, destruction, alteration, theft or loss of electronic data messages or electronic document
shall be punished by a minimum fine of one hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00) and a maximum commensurate
to the damage incurred and a mandatory imprisonment of six (6) months to three(3)years;

Piracy or the unauthorized copying, reproduction, dissemination, distribution, importation, use, removal, alteration,
substitution, modification, storage, uploading, downloading, communication, making available to the public, or
broadcasting of protected material, electronic signature or copyrighted works including legally protected sound
recordings or phonograms or information material on protected works, through the use of telecommunication
networks, such as, but not limited to, the internet, in a manner that infringes intellectual property rights shall be
punished by a minimum fine of one hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00) and a maximum commensurate to the
damage incurred and a mandatory imprisonment of six (6) months to three (3) years;

Violations of the Consumer Act or Republic Act No. 7394 and other relevant or pertinent laws through transactions
covered by or using electronic data messages or electronic documents, shall be penalized with the same penalties as

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provided in those laws; Other violations of the provisions of this Act, shall be penalized with a maximum penalty of
one million pesos (P1,000,000.00) or six (6) years imprisonment.

3. Limitations of the penal provisions of R.A. 8792 (from a Law Enforcement Perspective)
The penalties and sanctions do not successfully promote deterrence of cybercrimes.

2. The Internet Service Providers (ISP) are not obligated in the maintenance of very important logs and cooperation
with law enforcement in the investigation of computer crimes is not defined.

3. The Telecommunications companies, as in the ISPs, are not obligated to cooperate with law enforcement in the
investigation of computer crimes.

4. Internet Cafes/Cyber Cafes where most of the computer crimes perpetrators perform the violations are not
obligated to maintain records of their clients and customers.

5. Other offenses committed with the use of computers and/or the internet are not penalized under said law. (Internet
Gambling, Internet Pornography etc.)

CYBER CRIMES – crimes committed :

a. with the use of Information Technology
b. where computer, network, internet is the target
c. where the internet is the place of activity

2.1. HACKING
Hacking is the act of illegally accessing the computer system/network of an individual, group or business enterprise
without the consent or approval of the owner of the system.

2.2. CRACKING
Cracking is a higher form of hacking in which the unauthorized access culminates with the process of defeating the
security system for the purpose of acquiring money or information and/or availing of free services.

2.3. MALICIOUS SENDING OF E-MAILS

One of the very prevalent computer crimes in the Philippines, the sending of malicious and defamatory
electronic mails has rendered obsolete the traditional “snail-threat-mail” and has likewise become a new
medium in extorting money, or threatening prospective victims.

Electronic mails, being faster and easier to send to a great number of recipients, entails very little cost and
effort to send unlike the traditional paper mail while giving the sender a sense of “anonymity” that is hard to
trace for an ordinary individual.

2.4. INTERNET PORNOGRAPHY

The trafficking, distribution, posting, and dissemination of obscene material including children’s nude pictures,
indecent exposure, and child sex slavery posted into the internet, live streaming videos aired through the
internet under a certain fee constitutes one of the most important Cybercrimes known today.

A large number of internet pornography sites (IFRIENDS, JADECOOL, NETVENTURES, CAMCONTACTS)

offer its surfers live streaming web chats wherein chatters can chat with a girl of his choice “real-time” in
exchange of a certain fee. Site actresses or models under the ASIAN Category are mostly Filipinas and fees
range from $2.00 - $3.99 per minute.

2.5. LAUNCHING OF HARMFUL COMPUTER VIRUSES

A computer virus is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer without permission or knowledge of
the user. The original may modify the copies or the copies may modify themselves.

A virus can only spread from one computer to another when its host is taken to the uninfected computer, for instance
by a user sending it over a network or carrying it on a removable medium such as a floppy disk, CD, or USB drive.

Additionally, viruses can spread to other computers by infecting files on a network file system or a file system that is
accessed by another computer. Viruses are sometimes confused with computer worms and Trojan horses.

A worm, however, can spread itself to other computers without needing to be transferred as part of a host. A Trojan
horse is a file that appears harmless until executed. In contrast to viruses, Trojan horses do not insert their code into
other computer files.

The most classic example is the “Love Bug”. The subject of the email, a love letter, is so intriguing, that a recipient will
surely open it out of curiosity.

2.6. DISTRIBUTED DENIAL OF SERVICE ATTACKS (DDOS)

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DDoS attacks can be committed by employing multiple computers controlled by a single master computer server to
target a particular server by bombarding it with thousands of packets of data in an attempt to overwhelm the server
and cause it to crash.

2.7. WEBSITE DEFACEMENT

Website defacement is the unauthorized modification of a website.

2.8. ACQUIRING CREDIT CARD INFORMATION FROM A WEBSITE THAT OFFERS E-SERVICES
In the privacy of your own home, if you do not feel like going to the mall to buy something, you can always visit an
online shop (E-commerce website) and you can search almost anything ranging from goods to services and buy/avail
it with just a click of the mouse.

Several payment methods are being offered by the website thru credit card, checking account or by a third party
escrow service such as paypal, and billpoint.

Using such online shopping method have certain advantages but has more disadvantages.

When you shop online, the most convenient way to pay for the items you order is through your credit card. When you
pay thru your credit card, you need to disclose information such as your complete name, your postal address, zip
code, state, phone number credit card account number, its expiration date and its security code/pin. (CVV2)

Upon entering the above-mentioned information, it will be verified “real-time” by the site merchant. It usually takes a
minute to verify whether the credit card is valid or invalid. If valid, the information you entered will be stored in the
website’s database server.

Hackers look for the file containing the credit card information of all the customers who bought from a certain e-
commerce site.

Upon acquisition thereof, it will be decrypted to make it readable and all the information of the transactions will be
made available.

Hackers prefer VISA, AMERICAN EXPRESS and MASTERCARD when filtering credit card information. It is because
VISA and MASTERCARD are widely accepted by almost ALL Internet Shopping Sites. American Express on the other
hand has no CREDIT LIMIT.

Credit card numbers of American Express start with the number 3, MasterCard credit cards start with the number 5
while VISA Credit cards start with the number 4.
American Express credit cards have 15 digits Account Number while Visa and Mastercard credit cards contain 16.

2.9. INTERNET SHOPPING USING FRAUDULENTLY ACQUIRED CREDIT CARDS

Hackers, upon acquiring the desired credit card information now conducts “window shopping”, hopping from one shop
site to another, looking for cellphones, gadgets, apparels, computer peripherals, softwares etc.

When he finds what he wants to buy, he then add/s his desired item/s to the shopping cart and checkouts.

He will then supply the Credit Card information of the fraudulently acquired credit card such as the Complete name of
the cardholder, address, zip code, state, email address, credit card number and expiration date. Other pertinent
information such as shipping address of the items ordered will have to be supplied too.

Amazon.com, ebay.com, & yahooauctions.com are the e-commerce websites that are frequently victimized by credit
card hackers

2.10. WIRE TRANSFER OF FUNDS FROM A FRAUDULENTLY ACQUIRED CREDIT CARD

When a hacker knows your complete credit card information, he can extract CASH from the acquired credit/debit card
online. By signing up with Western Union Money Transfer (http://www.westernunion.com) using the fraudulently
acquired credit card information, he can pretend that he will just send money to his relative and western union will
directly debit the credit card and it will reflect on the billing statement of the original credit card holder.

Unlike shopping sites, Wire transfer of funds using credit cards require the credit card security number (CVV2).
Without the 3 digit cvv2, the online merchant will deny your credit card.

2.11. ONLINE AUCTION FRAUD

Performing online auction fraud does not necessarily require the cybercriminal to be a hacker. All he needs is good
communication skills, a little bit knowledge on Web Development and of course, fraudulently acquired Credit Cards.

First, the fraudster should signup for an account at an online auction site such as e-bay, yahoo auctions and U-Bid
.The fraudster falsifies all information that he enters on the signup page. The only true information is his email
address, for he will be contacted by interested bidders by means of email.

He will be asked to provide a credit card. This is where he will be needing the fraudulently acquired credit card.
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 When all of the required fields are signed up, his application will be approved and he will be a registered member of
the said auction site. He is now then allowed to bid, and auction any item.

How does it work?

A fraudster should have enough knowledge in web development for he will be making an auction page of the
item/s he will be auctioning. Legitimate bidders find attractive auction page believable. So if the fraudster
makes attractive auction pages, legitimate bidders will not find it hard to decide whether he will be placing a
bid or not.
A fraudster will auction expensive items such as laptops, cellphones, PDA’s (handheld devices), desktop
computers, camcorders and hard to find memorabilias. He will then sell it at a lower price for legitimate
bidders to bid immediately.

How does it work?

In an online auction, the integrity of a seller is known through his feedbacks. Feedbacks are obtained with
every successful deal made between a buyer and a seller. If both parties are satisfied with their deal, they will
both leave positive feedbacks to each other.
A fraudster, in order to obtain positive feedback, makes multiple accounts and exchanges feedback with each
account that he made for it to appear as a legitimate transaction.

How does it work?

An online fraudster only accepts payments thru personal checks, money order, wire transfer and western
union money transfer. It is bluntly stipulated in his auction page.

When a legitimate bidder decides to buy an item from the fraudster, he will then send the payment either of
the four payment methods he specified in the auction page. The fraudster, upon receiving the money stops all
communication with the buyer.

3. TECHNICAL TERMS

• ISP – stands for Internet Service Provider. It provides internet service to internet users.
• IP Address – series of numbers assigned by an Internet Service Provider to an internet user when it connects to
the Internet
• Dynamic IP Address – a type of IP Address that changes everytime the internet user accesses his Internet
Service Provider. It is usually assigned to dial-up or base speed broadband service subscribers (eg. ISP Bonanza,
Surfmaxx, PLDT myDSL 128kbps service etc.)
• Static IP Address – a type of IP Address that is constant regardless of the time or number of attempts the internet
user accesses the internet. It is usually assigned to High-Speed Internet Users or Corporate Accounts (eg. ADSL
(Asymetric Digital Subscriber Line) connections, E1 Internet Connections, OC3 Internet Connections, T1 Internet
Connections, Leased Line Internet Connections)
• Website – a portfolio of a person / organization / entity / company which is posted on the Internet for accessibility
worldwide.

4. THE INTERNET PROTOCOL (IP) ADDRESS

• The INTERNET PROTOCOL (IP) ADDRESS is the anchor of the investigation of all crimes committed via the
internet. The identification of the IP Address leads to the identity of the Internet Service Provider (ISP) used to
access the internet and eventually the subscriber of the account where the internet activity was performed.
• The IP Address as given by the ISP depends on the type of internet account a subscriber maintains, whether it is
a DYNAMIC IP or STATIC IP.

MAFIA

The Mafia, also referred to as La Cosa Nostra (Italian, variously translated as This Thing Of Ours or Our Thing), is the
collective name of various secret organizations in Sicily and the United States. The Mafia was originally the name of a
loose confederation of people in Sicily, who, in the middle ages, joined for the purposes of protection and vigilante law
enforcement. This confederation later engaged in organized crime.

A member of the Mafia is a "mafioso", or a "man of honor".

The Mafia spread to the United States through immigration by the Twentieth Century.

Mafia power peaked in the United States in the mid-Twentieth Century, until a series of FBI investigations in the 1970s
and 1980s somewhat curtailed the Mafia's influence. Despite the decline, the Mafia and its reputation have become
entrenched in American popular culture, portrayed in movies, TV shows, and even product commercials.

The term "mafia" has now been extended to refer to any large group of people engaged in organized crime (compare the
Russian Mafia and the Japanese Yakuza), or in suspicious activity (compare the Trenchcoat Mafia of Columbine High
School). When unqualified, however, "Mafia" still usually refers to the original Sicilian/American organizations.

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The Mafia was originally formed, in the mid-19th century, to serve as a secret vigilante group whose goal was to protect
the natives of Sicily.
The Mafia, is defined as a network of organized-crime groups that are based in Italy and America. The Sicilian Mafia,
evolved over centuries ago after a long line of foreign invaders ruled the Island of Sicily, while the American Mafia came
about following waves of Sicilian and Italian immigration in the 19th century.

Sicilian Mafia

Until the mid-19th century Sicily had been dominated by a long line of foreign invaders, including Phoenicians, Romans,
Arabs, French, and Spanish invaders. In an effort to protect themselves Sicilian natives banded together in groups that
carried out their own form of justice.

By the 19th century these generic groups of vigilantes emerged as their own private armies, or mafie, who were initially
established in secret to protect Sicilians against their foreign rulers. As time progressed, the Mafia started to take
advantage of the violent & chaotic conditions that frequently plagued the island of Sicily, these conditions paved the way
for the Mafia to get into the crime industry. Beginning with extortion this group of former vigilantes had now become part of
the problem, as they went on to become the well known criminal organization prone to using violence as means to
achieve their goals.

American Mafia

Due to a surge of Italian and Sicilian immigration, during the 1920s, the Mafia was able to plant it’s roots in American soil,
and begin an entirely new, but separate, organization of criminal entities.

American Mafia groups are all across the U.S, mainly found in New York and Chicago. They rose to power during the
Prohibition era, initially through liquor trading but later, after the Prohibition era, the American Mafia went onto other
criminal enterprises from illegal gambling to drug trafficking, they also infiltrated labor unions and legitimate businesses as
well.

The Mafia in the 20th Century

During the late 20th century, law-enforcement made vast progress in weakening the mafia mainly operating in the United
States and Italy, so much so that by the early 21st century the FBI had begun to cut down on resources that were devoted
to investigating organized crime. But even though law-enforcement agencies have made substantial progress in
combating organized crime, the Sicilian Mafia is still one of the four major criminal networks based in Italy and the
American Mafia are still currently involved in a wide range of illegal activities.

What Does Mafia Mean?

Mafia, is an abbreviation of the words ’Morte Alla Francia Italia Anelia!’ which in Italian means 'Death To the French Is
Italy’s Cry!'. The word Mafia was first published in 1862 in a play by Giuseppe Rizzuto called ‘I Mafiosi Della Vicaria’(The
Mafia in the Vicarage). Unlike the word Mafia the word Mafioso means member of the Mafia.

MAFIA FAMILIES

Bonanno Family

History: The Bonanno crime family emerged out of the historic Mafia war known as the Castellamarese War, becoming
one of the five families as envisioned by mobster Lucky Luciano. Most of the family had previously belonged to boss
Salvatore Maranzano. Maranzano was brought down by Luciano because of his love of power.

First Boss: Twenty-six-year-old Joseph "Joe Bananas" Bonanno, Sicilian-born and one of the youngest bosses of all
time.

Alliances: Close relationship with Joseph Profaci of the Profaci family (later the Colombo family).

Low Point: The Bonanno War or "Banana Split" occurred when the Commission demoted Bonanno to underboss,
sparking fervent family in-fighting among those who sided with Bonanno and those who sided with the new boss, Paul
Sciacca. The fighting continued until 1968, when Bonanno suffered a heart attack and retired, though by this point the
Commission had stripped the Bonanno family of its seat.

Current Status: Troubles with the law have plagued the family, leading one newspaper to report that 75 of its 150
members have been indicted on various charges. Although the family crawled back to the top under the direction of
former boss Joseph Massino, legal troubles and defectors/informants from within the family have threatened the
organization’s stability and reputation within the Mafia community. 

16
Colombo Family

History: Following the Castellamarese War of 1929-1931, the family emerged as the Profaci family. It was headed by
Joseph Profaci, without much threat to his leadership, until the 1950s. After Profaci’s death, Joseph Magliocco took over
for a short time before the family was handed over to Joe Colombo, and the family bears his namesake to this day.

First Boss: Joseph Profaci, a man who ruled with an iron fist and was despised by many of his family members.

Alliances: Close relationship with Joe Bonanno of the Bonanno family. Following Profaci’s death, boss Joseph Magliocco
schemed with Bonanno to take out the three other family bosses, a plan that failed when the Commission learned of their
intent. This led to Magliocco’s removal as boss by the Commission.

Low Point: Colombo’s reign ended when an assassination attempt left him in a coma for seven years, and the family
struggled to find consistent leadership, promoting Thomas DiBella for a brief one-year stint before Carmine Persico took
control. Persico received a sentence of life in prison not long after his appointment.

Current Status: The family has been greatly depleted from its heyday, and continues to be ruled by Carmine Persico,
now 73 years old, from prison with help from those family members who remain on the ground. Some believe that the
family is quietly building itself back up to restore the power it once had.

 Gambino Family

History: The Gambino crime family dates back to a Neapolitan crime gang in 1916, but the family as it is known today
grew out of the Castellamarese War in 1929. Vincenzo "Vincent" Mangano would become the family’s first boss, but Carlo
Gambino would ultimately lend the family his name and bring it to great power.

First Boss: Vincenzo "Vincent" Mangano, considered part of the "old school" Mafia. Mangano’s brother, Phil, was
murdered shortly after Vincent came to power, and not long after Vincent himself went missing, never to be found. Family
member Albert Anastasia was believed to be behind the hits, though no proof was ever discovered.

Alliances: During his time, Carlo Gambino was the most powerful of the Five Families’ bosses. It is believed that
Gambino had a strong behind-the-scenes hand in controlling the Lucchese family.

Low Point: When Gambino’s underboss, Paul Castellano, took the reigns following Gambino’s death, the FBI closed in
on the family, believing it to be the easiest of the five to infiltrate. In 1983, 13 members of the family were indicted for drug
trafficking. The family would later be taken over by John Gotti, one of the most high-profile Mafia bosses, until he received
a sentence of life in prison.

Current Status: Since John Gotti Sr.’s death in prison in 2002, power of the Gambino family has changed hands
numerous times. For a spell, the family was run by John Gotti Jr., the prior boss’s son. While the organization remains
strong, with between 200 and 250 members, it has declined since the glory days of Carlo Gambino, due much in part to
the murder of Paul Castellano and the imprisonment of John Gotti.

Genovese Family

 History: The origins of the Genovese crime family date to the early 1900s, when several street gangs developed into the
Morello crime family. By the early 1920s, Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria took control of the family, attracting soon-to-
be-famous mobsters such as Carlo Gambino, Lucky Luciano, Frank Costello and Vito Genovese to the family. Masseria
lost his life during the Castellamarese War, and was believed to have been killed by Luciano’s crew, who wanted to
assume power. Luciano took control of the family, with Vito Genovese as his underboss and Frank Costello as his
consigliere. However, following a prison sentence for Luciano and an escape for Genovese to avoid murder charges, the
family landed in the hands of Frank Costello and eventually went to Vito Genovese, who renamed the family after himself.

First Boss: Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria.

Alliances: The Genovese family had a short-lived alliance with the Gambinos in the 1970s, though this arrangement
dissipated as the Genovese family came to dislike Gambino boss John Gotti’s flair for the dramatic and frequent public
appearances. The nail in the coffin between the two families occurred when boss Vincent Gigante of the Genovese family
tried to have John Gotti killed.

Low Point: In 1959, boss Vito Genovese was sentenced to 15 years in prison. His time away allowed Carlo Gambino to
grow his power among all the Mafia families, while Genovese’s squabbles in prison with his former driver, Joseph Valachi,
led to information leaking out to the FBI and the public about the Mafia and many of its secrets. Genovese died in prison
after serving 10 years of his sentence, leaving the Genovese family weakened for a time.

17
Current Status: Like all the Five Families, the Genovese crime family has been systematically broken down by
authorities, as numerous members have been brought up on charges and convicted with lengthy prison sentences
awaiting them. Nevertheless, it is believed at this time that the Genovese family is the m ost powerful in the country,
controlling interests in New York, New Jersey, Atlantic City and Florida.

Lucchese Family

History: The Lucchese crime family, as it is known today, emerged out of the Castellamarese War of 1929-1931, with
Gaetano "Tommy" Gagliano serving as the appointed boss and Gaetano "Tommy" Lucchese as the appointed underboss.
The family was known for its successful forays into industries such as trucking and clothing. Following Gagliano’s death in
1953, Lucchese took over and successfully ran the organization for many years with an excellent reputation. He never
received a criminal conviction in his 44 years in the Mafia.

First Boss: Prior to the Castellamarese War and the formal creation of the Lucchese family, Gaetano "Tom" Reina ruled
supreme. Reina’s assassination (as ordered by Lucky Luciano) was a catalyst of the Castellamarese War.

Alliances: In the 1980s, boss Vittorio "Vic" Amuso and underboss Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso were close allies of
Genovese crime family boss Vincent "Chin" Gigante. Together, the two families plotted the assassination of Gambino
family boss John Gotti, which failed.

Low Point: The reign of Amuso and Casso in the 1980s and early '90s marks perhaps the most turbulent point of the
family’s history. The failed hit on John Gotti sparked tension between the three families involved, and was followed by a
series of hits-gone-wrong that caught a lot of attention. Amuso and Casso were caught by the FBI in the early 1990s and
sentenced to life in prison.

Current Status: Officially, boss Vittorio Amuso continues to rule the family, though day-to-day operations are managed
by a three-man panel, including Aniello "Neil" Miglore. The latter, who is believed to have the final say on issues, has
brought the Lucchese family to a place of stability and success.

THE SICILIAN MAFIA

The largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily lies almost at its center. As such, it was a bitterly fought over prize
colonized by commercial powers: Greeks, Romans, Arabs, and Normans. In the twelfth century, rule passed to a German
dynasty, then to the French, the Austrians, and, finally, Spain: "Until the nineteenth century aristocratic families controlled
Sicilian life more or less independency of vrhatever conqueror happened to be ruling at any given time" (Orlando 2001:
l0). In 1860, Italy was freed of foreign rule and united by Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807-1882), but for the exploited Sicilians,
life have not changed.

The government in Rome imposed a tax policy on the island that had the "overall effect of taking money out of Sicilian
agriculture for investment in tie north".Landowners escaped heavy taxation which fcll disproportionately on the peasants.

Eventually, the aristocracy collapsed, and the adrninistration of their lands fell to
rniddlemen called gabelloti, rnanagers who had already gained rhe reputation of uomi inteso
"strong men" (Orlando 2001).

The gabelloti ruled over the estate-latifondo-with brute force, protecting it from bandits, peasant organizations, and unions.
He was assisted by famiglia, amici (friends), and campieri (lawfully armed mounted guards). The campieri were hired
because they were uomini di rispettu, "men of respect," meaning they were quick to use violence and people feared them.
An important-that is, widely feared camp iere could become a gabelloti. The gabelloti did not usually perform his
overseer's functions in person----often he did not even show up on rhe estate that had been enrusted to his custody: "He
simply allowed his name to be mentioned, with the declaration that the estate was under his protection" (Catanzaro
1992:28).

The gabelloti was a patron to his peasants who labored on the latifondo; he controlled access to
scarce resources-in particular, farming land-and he acted as a mediator between official power and government and the
peasantry, a position he maintained by the exercise of force. In league with the landlords, he fought land refonn, labor
unions, and revolution (Servadio 1976). Peasants revolted in many parts of the Mezzogiorno, and an 1866 uprising in
Palermo required an expeditionary force to quell it: "Such events soldered the alliance between the Mafia and aristocracy
even more firmly,'

Along with their counterparts who provided protection in urban markets (for example, by policing monopolistic business
practices), the gabelloti and the network of relationships surrounding him, campieri, famiglia, and amici, became known
18
as the Mafia: "The mafia was outlaw, but tolerated, secret but recognizable, criminal but upholding of order. It protected
and ripped off the owners of the great estates, protected and ripped off the sharecroppers who worked the estates, and
ripped off the peasants who slaved on them" (Robb 1996: 48). Explanations of the term mafa comefrom Sicilian
historical and literary works that link its root and meaning to elements prevailing with Sicilian culture.

The word mafia is apparently Sicilian-Arabic derived from terms meaning to protect and to act as a guardian; a friend or
companion; to defend; and preservation, power, integrity, strength, and a condition that designantes the remedy of
damage and ill. In sum, rnafia rneans "protection against the arrogance of the powerful, remedy to any darnage,
sturdiness of body, strength and serenity of spirit, and the best and most exquisite part of life.

Thus, rnafia is a state of mind, a way of life not a secret crinrinal organization.

Barzini points out that the two (Mafia and mafia) are closely related, that Mafia could not
flourish without mafia. Mafia represents a general attitude toward the state: "A mafioso did not invoke State or law'in his
private quarrels, but made himself respected and safe by winning a reputation for toughness and courage, and settled his
differences by fighting.He recognized no obligation exceptthose of the code of honor or omerta (manliness) whose chief
article forbade giving information to the publuce authorities.

In Southern Italy an ethos of mistrust and suspicion pervaded personal and business relationships-a dilemma the rnafioso
could overcome by offering himself as a guarantor. Thus, in Mafia areas, at bottom-nothing could really be unjust, and
honor "was connected less with justice than with domination and physical strength": a Hobbesian world ruled by the credo
"might is right." Mafiosi were frequently not only tolerated by their communities but "respected to the point where they
could parade as standard bearers of a more equitable system of justice than that provided by the state.

Every mafioso dernands rispetto-indeed, is referred to uomo di rispetto: a man wofthy of re spect. American maJioso Bill
Bonanno (1999: xiii) points out that this "respect has nothing to do with affection or even with a shou. of good manners. It
is an acknowledgement of power" that Cesare Mori notes requires a concrete recognition of the prerogative of immunitv
belonging to the mafioso, not only in his person, but also every.thing that he had to do uith or that he.w'as pleased to take
under his protection.

These "services" are the essence of mafia -the mafioso is a provider of protection broadly defined. For legitirnate
entrepreneurs, he provides insurance against otherwise untrustworthy suppliers and/or customers and will lirnit
competition by restricting market entry.. He acts as a guarantor so that persons who do not trust one another can transact
business with a significant degree of confidence; this refers to legitimate entrepreneurs and, most particularly, the
illegitirnate, who cannot turn to the police or courts to remedy their grievances. A Mafioso engaged in a legitirnate
business enjoys advantages over other businessmen: potential competitors are likely to be deterred, and criminals will
give his enterprise a wide berth .

Because of its ability to control elections, the Mafia was courted by political powers in Rome. The "Mafia became the only
electoral force that counted in Sicily and the goverrunent was realistic in acceptance of the fact".

Mussotini and the Mafia

Mussoliniis rise to power in the had important implications for the Mafia and Italian American organized crime.

Mussolini visited Sicily in 1924 and was introduced to Ciccio Cuccia, capomafioso who was also a local mayor. Don Ciccio
accompanied Il Duce on a tour and, after seeing the large number of police officers guarding him, is reputed to have said:
"You're with me, so there's nothing to worry about”. Don Ciccio, the large police escort indicated a lack of rispetto. When
Mussolini declined to discharge the police contingent, the capomafioso arranged for the town piazza to be empty when Il
Duce made his speech: "When Mussolini began his harangue he found himself addressing a group of about twenty village
idiots, one-legged beggars, bootblacks, and lottery-ticket sellers specially picked by'Don Ciccio to form an audience"
(1964:72).

A totalitarian regime does not tolerate pockets of authority that are not under its control, and Mussolini quickly moved to
destroy the Mafia. Elections were abolished in 1925, depriving the Mafia of its major instrurment of alliance with
government and an important basis for its immunity frorn criminal justice. The other important basis was intimidation.

Musollini responded by investing Prefect Cesare Mori of Lombardy, a career police officer, with emergency police powers
and sending him after the Mafia.

Mori assembled a small army of agents and set about the task of purging the island of mafiosi:
"Under the jurisdicdon of Prefect Mori, repression became savage. Many mafiosi were sent to

19
prison, killed or tortured, but also many leftwingers were called 'mafosi' for the occasion, and
were disposed of. . . . In many cases the landowners provided Mori with information against the
mafosi they had so far emploved, who had been their means to safeguard their interests ag;ainst the peasant. This was
logical because they saw that the regime would provide a better and cheaper substitute" Thus, the Fascists replaced the
Mafia as intermediaries and maintainers
of Sicilian law and order. Mori swooped down on villages and, with the free application of torture reminiscent of the
Inquisition, was able to arrest hundreds of mafiosi.

20
He arrested Don Ciccio and other important capimafiosi. He declared the Mafia had been destroyed. However, the reality
was otherwise, and the Mafia began to reassert itself by 1941. When questioned bvAllied officials at the end of World lVar
II, Mori stated: "I drove the mafia underground all right. I had unlimited police powers and a couple of battalions of Black-
shirts. But how can you starnp out what is in people’s blood?" .

Many Mafia bosses assumed important positions within the regime, and the Fascists failed to
significandy transform the social and economic conditions upon which the Mafia depended.
When Mori began to investigate the connection between the Mafia and high-level Fascists, he was forced into retirement .
"It was no surprise that the Mafia rapidly reemerged as soon as fascism fell" ; Manv mafosi awaited "liberation," which
came in the form of the Allied landing in 1943. The campaign against the Mafia did succeed in driving some important
mafiosi out of Sicilv. They traveled to the United States at an opportune time, during the Prohibition era, and took up
important positions in a newly emerging form of organized crime.

The Structure of the Mafia

At the center of the Mafia is the padrino or capomafioso, around whom other mafosi gather forming a cosca.The word
cosca refers to the leaves of an artichoke, the capomafioso being the globe's heart. The structure consists of a network of
two men that is patron-client oriented, relationships based on kinship, patronage, and friendship The typical cosca rarely
has more than 15 or 20 members, and at the center are four or five blood relatives

Capomafioso -turned-informer Tommaso Busceta describes the cosca as hierarchical, with elected leaders and precise
decision-making processes. Each cosca takes its name from the territory under its control and is compo sed of uomini
d’onore (*men of honor") in numbers varying from 10 to 100. They are organized into groups of I0 (decina) headed by a
capodecina. Above the capidecina is the capofamiglia, who has a deputy and a few advisors.Three or rnore families with
adjoining territories are represented by capimandamenti who are mebers of the cupola or commissione. This central
directorate of the Mafia, headed by capocomissione oversee the activities of the organization on a provincial level.

THE NEAPOTITAN CAMORRA

Whereas the Mafia began as tnore of an idea than an organization, and whereas it evolved along cultural lines in western
Sicily, the Camorra was deliberately structured as a criminal sociery. The term camorra is believed to have derived from
the Castillian kamora, meaning "contestation," and to have been irnported into Naples during the years of Spanish
domination (Serao i911a). Ernest Serao reports that the forebears of the Neapolitan Camorra were the Spanish brigands
of the Sierras
Known as the gamuri (191la: 723): "Not a passerby nor a vehicle escaped their watchful eye and their fierce claws, so
that traveling or going from one place to another on business was impossible for anyone without sharing with the
ferocious watchers of the Sierras either the money he had with hirn or the profits of the business that had taken him on his
journey"

While there are several versions of how the term Camon"a came into being it
seems clear that the Camorra as an organization developed in Spanish prisons during the Bourbon rule of the Two
Sicilies (the Mezzogiorno) early in the nineteenth century. The members of this criminal society eventually moved their
control of the prisons into Naples proper. They were "rather tightly, centrally, and hierarchically organized".

The Camorra "was organized as openly and carefully as a public school system, or an efficient political machine in one of
our own cities. Naples was divided into twelve districs, and each of these into a number of subdistricts.

The Camorra was "more efficiently organized than the police, and set up a parallel system of law in the typical southern
Italian style" .In contrast with the Mafia, the Camorra was highly
organized and disciplined.

There is a capontrine-a sectional head-and a capo in testa, or local head-in-chief of the Camorra, a kind of president of
the confederation of all the tlvelve sections into ufuch Naples is divided and v'hich are presided over by rhe capintini. The
lowest or entry level is the picciuotto which requires a bloody deed including very dreadful crimes committed against very
peaceful and quiet people. If he wishes to live on other peoplels rnoney, he must do the best he can by stealing, cheating,
or swindling whom he can, giving, however to his superiors of the Catnorra proper shruffo or proportionate percentage.

While there are still criminals operating in Naples identified as being part of the Camorra,
Francis Iarrni (1972) argues that they have no direct links to the criminal society of the past.

21
Ruggiero reports that the last boss of the traditional Camorra died of natural causes in 1989 "after having acted for years
as an informal 'justice of the peace' in one of thernost
crowded areas of the city.

Indeed, postwar Naples has been plagued with violence attributed to these "unscrupulous individuals." Suspected but not
convicted, Sicilian rwfiosi w'ere forced into '(internal exile"--obliged to leave Naples. In collusion with local criminals, they
began to expand illegal oppornrnity. In the countryside, Camorra gangs began to emerge as soon as the Allied forces
withdrew. They asserted control over agriculture and catde markes. Slowly, they began to move into the urban areas of
Naples to further their control over these markets, dictating prices and acting as brokers between sellers and buyers. They
subsequendv moved into and expancled upon the Naples coufraband itrclustry'ftorn cigarettes to clrugs. An estimated
three-quarters of thc cigarettes solcl in Naples, where about one-third of the inhabitants arc unelnployecl, originate in the
black rnarketl2-Italy has very high cigtrrette taxes. In 1997, more than wcl
dozen rnurders were blarned on a feud between two Camorra groups (the Mazzarella and Conrini clans) for control of the
contraband cigarette business (I Iundley 1997). Gambling, and especially extortion fiom illegitimate ancl legitin.rate
enterprises, round out Camorra activities

When government reconstruction programs were initiaied in the Campania region, the
Camorra, much like their Mafia "brothers" in Sicily, soon found a new source of income, and
theii ability to provide jobs gained them political influence (B.htn 1996). The earlier versions of

In stark contrast to the Sicilian Mafia, the Secondigliano Alliance, a collecion of some of the most ruthless Camorra clans
in Naples, is ruled by Maria Licciardi. The short, fiftyish woman is the daughter of a respected camorrista and has three
camorrista brothers, whose imprisonment cleared the way for her to ascend the Camorra hierarchy. After being a fugitive
for two years, hiding out in Eastern Europe, she was arrested in 2001 by a special Neapolitan police squad that had been
tracking her for eight months @ Kennedy 2001).

22
THE'NDRANGHETA

The province of Calabria is located in the far south of the Italian "boot." It encompasses about 6,000 square miles, of
which more than 90 percent are hills or mountains. Italy's poorest province, Calabria has a population in excess
of2,000,000 people; the capital city, Reggio di Calabria, is home to about 200,000. Lacking the charm of historical sites
and world-class art, tourism is almost nonexistent. Much of the housing stock was built illegally by criminal groups, the
fearsome Onerate Societa ("Honored Society") or 'Ndrangheta ("Brotherhood").

In Calabria, the term 'ndrangheta is used to indicate a high degree of heroism and virtue as embodied in the'ndranghetisti,
men who are governed by omerta. The word 'ndrangheta derives from the Greek andra gateo, meaning to behave like an
able man. There is a Mafia-type hierarchy in each andrine or ‘ndrina- equivalent to a cosca-and members take a blood
oath.

The'Ndrangheta, sometimes referred to as the "Calabrian Mafia," consists of 85 (Paoli 1994) to

144 to 160 (de Gennaro 1995) andrine, some exceeding 200 members, with a cornbined membership of 5,000 to 6,000.
Each group-'ndrina----exerts its influence over a well-defined geographic area generally corresponding to a town or
village, although the 'Ndrangheta now operates in northern Italy's cities and throughout much of Europe, wherever
Calabrians have settled. They are particularly strong in Canada and Australia (Paoli 1994). In the larger areas such as
Reggio, 'ndrina could be located in one area, but the criminal functions will be divided either by "turf'or by function. For
example, one may control extortion while another will control drugs (Snedden and Vsser 1994). The 'Ndrangheta also
collaborates with Sicilian and Neapolitan counterparts. Unlike these groups, however 'Ndrangheta groups are based on
blood ties, allowing for a high degree of internal cohesion, which protects against informants. Omerta remains sffong, and
there are few cooperating witnesses of Calabrian origin (de Gennaro 1995; Bohlen 1996d). Their violence is reminiscent
of the cruel Colombian practice of no dejar la semilla (dont leave the seed): known as fida, all members of a victim's
family, including women and children, are killed.

At its core, a'ndrina is composed of one or two biological families and their network of artificial
kinships: "In order to strengthen the cohesion of the inner nucleus, the practice of intermarriage between first cousins is
strongly encouraged and marriages are also used to cement alliances with other groups in the immediate neighbourhood.
Loyalty is further promoted through the use of initiation ceremonies similar to those of tlre American Cosa
Nostra .'Ndrangheta women frequently play important roles, maintaining family traditions and running family enterprises.
Like its Sicilian counterparts, 'Ndrangheta has established a commission that recognizes territorial hegemony and
mediates disputes in an effort to reduce the high level of violence for which the Calabrians are noted. In 1999 the
Carabinieri captured the man reputed to be the most powerful'Ndrangheta boss; Giuseppe Piromalli was convicted of
murder in absentia and had been a fugitive since 1993. He was arrested inside a secret apartrnent located in what
appeared to be an uninhabited old hut, but it contained highly sophisticated 'James Bond"electronic equipment.

The organization exhibis its criminal skills mainly in kidnapping, vast-scale international
arms and drug trafficking, extortion from almost all profit-making activities, and control of public contracts (de Gennaro
1995). Extortion inhibits legitimate investrnent and plays a significant role in the backwardness of the region. During the
1980s, ransom kidnappings provided capital for entry into large-scale drug trafficking. Many of these kidnappings were
collaborative efforts among 'Ndrangheta, Camorra, and Mafia groups (Siebert 1996). Ready access to the sea makes
drug, as well as arrns and cigarette, smuggling relatively easy. Drug profits led to the purchase of large tracts of land and
the opening of legitimate businesses, such as supermarkets, although not necessarily in Calabria (Paoli 1994). The
grou.ing of cannabis has become part of the organization's porrfolio, and marijuana plantations have been discovered in
western Calabria .

SACRA CORONA UNITA AND THE ALBANIAN CONNECTION

The Puglia (Apulia) region at the heel of the Italian boot forms an elongated peninsula on the
Adriatic and Ionian seas. The Sacra Corona Unita (SCU), Sacred United Crown, evolved in the region already noted for
Camorra and ‘Ndrangheta activities. As the name suggests, the SCU uses a great deal of Roman Catholic imagery as
part of its rituals. At the end of the 1970s and early 1980s,1ocal criminal gangs began patterning themselves on their elder
Mafia and Camorra colleagues, eventually coalescing into the SCU. The origins of the SCU are traced to Giuseppe
Rogoli, who reportedly established the organization as a ritual brotherhood on Chrisnnas day in 1983, while a prisoner
serving a life sentence for murder. The SCU is organized horizontally, with a series of about 45 autonomous clans
accountable to the common interests of the organization (Fless et al. 1999: 387).

23
Total membership is estimated at about 2,000, and women often play important roles in the business operations. The
SCU has close ties to the Balkans, particularly Albania, located just across the Strait of Otranto from Puglia. During World
War II, Albania was occupied by Mussolini's Italy.

Albania, a primarily Muslim nation with a population of about 1.5 million, is slightly smaller than Maryland. A mostly
mountainous country with small plains along its long coastline on the Adriatic Sea, Albania is noted for its strong sense of
familial and clan ties. Albanian criminal groups have much in common with their southern Italian colleagues, including
concepts of omerta and famiglia. Albanian tradition includes absolute loyalty to the extended family and clan, known as
fare, and the notion of bessa requires total respect for oral promises.

Once the most isolated country in Europe, A1bania became a haven for local and foreign crinrinal groups after the
collapse of its Salinist regime in the early 1990s. The opening of the country's borders and political disarray have allowed
Albania to become a primary altemative to raditional Balkan smuggling routes through the former Yugoslavia that were
disrupted by the breakout of ethnic fighting in the early 1990s. Trkittg advantage of a weak central government and a
great deal of political chaos, SCIJ clans were quick to establish a presence in Albania, linking up with local criminal
groups.

Being a rather recent phenomenon not as strong as the Mafia or Camorra, Sacra Corona Unita leaders apparently
decided to join forces rather than run the risk of a conflict with Albanian OC groups, which are known to be extremely
violent. As a result, in certain areas of Italy, the market for cannabis, prostitution, and the smuggling of illegal immigrants
is run mainly by Albanians, whose situation has been strengthened as a result of the Kosovo crisis: "As the Albanian
gangs continue to proliferate, the SCU has been there to support them in joint venture opportunities such as the trade of
weapons and drugs" (Fless et al. 1999:390).
The SCU is behind the smuggling of thousands of Albanians into ltaly, including Albanian women sold into prostitution.
Macedonia, which borders on Albania, has become a major center of the European sex trade (Gall 2001). A crackdown in
Italy led to the relocation of hundreds of mafiosi to the Albanian coastal town of More, while theirAlbanian counterparrs are
found throughout Italy (Cilluffo and Salmoiraghi 1999). Albanian criminals frequently reside in Calabria, indicating ties to
the 'Ndrangbeta, and in 1999, police in the coastal Albanian city of Durres, with Italian assistance, arrested one ofthe
godfathers of the Sacra Corona . With its strategic position on the Adriatic, the SCU is able to provide smuggling services
to the Mafia, Camorra, and,'Ndranghtera. It routinely uses Albania's long and now virtually unguarded coastline as a
staging area for srnuggling drugs-Southwest Asian heroin, hashish, and, to a lesser extenr, cocaine-arms, and other
contraband across the Adriatic Sea to Italy.There are also ties arnong the SCU, Colombian cartels, and Russian,
Southeast fuian, and Southwest fuian criminal groups. A1banian organized crime groups are hybrid organizations, often
involved both in criminal activity and in political activities, mainly relating to Kosovo-based organizations. Albanian
criminals are also involved in the traffic of illegal immigrants to Western Europe, transporting Albanians, Kurds, Chinese,
and peo_ple from the Indian subcontinent. Albanian groups are mainly responsible for the crossing of the Adriatic Sea
from the Albanian coast to Italy.

From Italy, illegal immigrants are transported by allied criminal groups such as the SCU. Immigration is not only a source
of income, but important in creating networks in foreign countries, bridgeheads for the Albanian Mafia abroad. Repora
indicate that some of the people admitted lnto Westem European or North America as refugees during the Kosovo conflict
had been carefully chosenthe Albanian Mafia to stay in the host country and act as a future liaison for the criminal
networks.

COLOMBIAN DRUG ORGANIZATION

Colombian Headquarters: The drug lord oversees operations through designates who are responsible for
regionaldirectors. He will also have a staff responsible for Colombian operations, including production,
iransportation,distribution, finances, and enforcement.

Regional Director: Responsible for overall operations of the several cells within a region, the regional director reportsvia
cell phone, fax, or e-mail to a designate in Colombia. The regional director has diicretion in the day-to-day operations, but
ultimate authority rests with the leadership in Colombia.

Cells: Compartmentalization involves cells of 10 or more members, each operating independenfly-members of one cell
typically do not know members of other cells. Upper echelon and management levels of thes-e cells are
normallycomposed of family members or longtime close associates who can be trusted because their family members
remain in Colombia as hostages to the cell members' good behavior. Operating within a geographic area, each cell
specializesin a particular facet of the drug business, such as transpon, storage, wholesale dGtrioution, or money
laundeiing. The head of each cell repor.ts directly to a regional director.

24
MEDELLIN CARTEL

Medellin, an Andean industrial and tourist city of about 1.5 million persons in the province of Antioquia, has been the
home of some of Colombia's most notorious drug traffickers. Antioquia and neighboring provinces bore the brunt of the
civil war violence of L948-1958. Long before cocaine emerged as an important commodity, Medellin had a long-standing
reputation for smuggling and as a school for pickpockets. It is known as a place where assassins are trained in such
techniques as the nsesino de la moto: a passenger on a motorbike uses an automatic weapon-usually a .45 caliber
machine pistol. The murder rate in Medellin is nearly nine times that of New York City. It is virtually free of any American
diplomatic personnel. The city served as the headquarters for drug-trafficking organizations known in Colombia as Los
Grandes Mafiosos and in the United States as the Medellin Cartel, whose founders include Pablo Escobar, the Ochoa
clan, and Carlos Lehder-Rivas.

Lehder-Rivas was indicted in l98l by aJacksonville, Florida, federal grand jury for drug trafficking
and income tax evasion, and in 1983 the United States requested his extradition. Lehder-Rivas went underground,
emerging back in Medellin denouncing the United States for imperialism. He threatened to join forces with the Manrist
revolutionary group known as M-19. in a 1987 shootout, Lehder-Rivas was arrested by Colombian authorities and
extradited to the United States. The following year, Lehder-Rivas was convicted of shipping 3.3 tons of cocaine to Florida
and Georgia in 1979 and 1980, and sentenced to life without parole. In 1991 he appeared as a U.S. government witness
in the trial of General Manuel Noriega, who, he stated, provided enorrnous help-and sometimes doublecrossed-the cartel.
Lehder-Rivas alleged that Noriega had sold the cartel an arsenal of Uzi submachine guns as well as photographs and
addresses of DEA agents but had also seized their cocaine
and, after being praised by the DEA" sold it back to tlre traffickers (Rohter l99la).

Pabla Escobar The most notorious member of the cartel was born in 1949; his father was afarmer, his mother a
schoolteacher. Pablo Escobar (Gaviria) received a high school education but was too poor to attend college. He
embarked upon a career in petry crime, later rising to bodyguard-enforcer for an electronics smuggler. By 1976, Escobar
headed a small group of "mules" who transported raw coca paste and base from the south into Colombia, where it was
processed into cocaine. In that year, he was arrested with five other men and charged with attempted bribery-they had
attempted to smuggle a 39-pound shipment of cocaine inside a spare tire. After three months, the case was dropped on a
technicality. The records of the case subsequently disappeared, and the two officers who had arrested Escobar were
murdered.

“Fabio Ochoa Restrepo was the patriarch of one of Colombia’s most important drug trafficking families,” according to the
Miami Herald, on February 19, 2002. His three sons were all top lieutenants in the Medellín cartel, one of the richest and
most successful drug operations in the history of such businesses. However, the well-connected and highly respected
Ochoa Restrepo was never accused or indicted on drug-trafficking charges, either by the Colombian or the U.S.
government, and up to the time of his death, he defended the reputation of his sons and his family. Fábio Ochoa Restrepo
was a famed horse breeder and the patriarch of one of Colombia’s most important drug- Ochoa Restrepo was a renowned
South American horse breeder and was considered to be a verywealthy man. He and his family lived on a large ranch
called La Loma. He was in ill health for most of his adult life and died at 78 years of age of kidney on February 18, 2002.

Fábio Ochoa Vásquez is the youngest son of Fábio Ochoa Restrepo. Fábio Ochoa Vásquez was allegedly involved with
the Medellín cartel, a Colombian drug cartel once headed by Pablo Escobar. Jorge Luis and Fábio Ochoa Vásquez were
both top-ranking lieutenants in the organization. On February 19, 2002, Fábio Ochoa Vásquez turned himself in to
authorities and urged his brothersto do the same, hoping he could cut a deal with the Colombian government. All three
brothers ended up serving time in Colombian prisons, spending five years a piece for their involvement with the Medellín
cartel. All three brothers were released in 1996 and vowed that they would
never involve themselves in the cocaine business again. But the temptations of the family’s business were too great for
Fábio, who became involved with a Mexican group smuggling and distributing in Florida. Fábio was indicted by a federal
court and extradited to the United States. He was convicted on May 27, 2003, and sentenced to time in a Florida prison.

OCHOA Vásquez, Jorge Luis A son of Fábio Ochoa Restrepo, an alleged major
drug-trafficking operative in and supplier to the Medellín cartel. Ochoa Vásquez was known for a variety of aliases,
including, El Gordo, Los Pablos, Moises Moreno Miranda, Jorge Luis Azquez, El Niño, El Ocho, and Jorge Luis Ochoa
Arismendez. Jorge Luis Ochoa Vásquez was allegedly
involved with the Medellín cartel, a Colombian drug cartel once headed by Pablo Escobar. Jorge
According to the Miami Herald on February 19, 2002, “[Fábio] Ochoa Vasquez was the first majortrafficker to turn himself
in to authorities in exchange for a promise he would not be extradited for past crimes. His surrender opened the way for
his older brothers to also turn themselves in.” The deal was subsequently canceled by the Colombian government and
replaced with a new one after Pablo Escobar was killed in a shootout with police in 1993. “A December 1997
constitutional change reinstated extradition but only for crimes committed after that date,” the paper also stated.
All three brothers ended up serving time in Colombian prisons, spending five years a piece for
their involvement with the Medellín cartel. All three brothers were released in 1996 and vowed that they would never
involve themselves in the cocaine business again. Since then, Jorge Luis has remained in Colombia and has not been

25
sought for any other drug-trafficking businesses. He helped his father run their horsebreedingoperations until his death in
February 2002.

Juan Ochoa Vásquez was released from prison in July after serving five months of a six-year sentence. He is the son of
Fábio Ochoa Restrepo and the brother of Fábio Ochoa Vásquez and Jorge Luis Ochoa Vásquez. Juan Ochoa is wanted
in the United States for the 1986 slaying of a Drug Enforcement Administration informant. He has not left Colombia and
has not been identified recently by the U.S. government as being involved in any current drug businesses.

CALI CARTEL

The Cali Cartel was a drug cartel based in southern Colombia, around the city of Cali and the Valle del Cauca
Department.The Cali Cartel was founded by the Rodríguez Orejuela brothers, Gilberto and Miguel, as well as associate
José Santacruz Londoño. The Cali Cartel was formed by the Rodriguez brothers and Santacruz, all coming from what is
described as a higher social background than most other traffickers of all time.The recognition of this social background
was displayed in the group's nickname as "Cali's Gentlemen

Organization

The lax attitude of the DEA on cocaine is believed to be what allowed the group to prosper, but also to develop and
organize itself into multiple "cells" that appeared to operate independently, yet reported to a "celeno" or manager, who
then reported back to Cali.[

The independent cell structure is what set the Cali Cartel apart from the Medellín Cartel. The Cali Cartel operated as a
tight group of independent criminal organizations, as opposed to the Medellíns' structure of a central leader, Pablo
Escobar.

It was believed each cell would report to a larger group, who would then report to the leaders of the cartel. The groups as
cited by former Cali accountant Guillermo Pallomari are:

Narco-trafficking: Control over processing labs, shipping methods and routes.

Military: Control over security, punishment/discipline and bribery in relation to military or police officials.

Political: Responsible for forging governmental links, Congressional members, federal officials and local authorities.

Financial: Control over money-laundering, front businesses and legitimate business ventures.

Legal: Control over representation for captured traffickers, hiring of lobbyists and overseas representation.

The Cali Cartel would eventually go on to be known by then DEA chief Thomas Constantine as "The biggest, most
powerful crime syndicate we've ever known."[8][4]

Activities

Trafficking

The Cali Cartel, whose brief roots began in trafficking marijuana, soon shifted to cocaine due to its ease of transporting
and greater profit margin. The cartel would be known for innovation in trafficking and production by moving its refining
operations out of Colombia to Peru and Bolivia, as well as for pioneering new trafficking routes through Panama.

The Cartel also diversified into opium and was reported to have brought in a Japanese chemist to help its refining
operation.At the height of the Cali Cartel's reign, they were cited as having control over 90% of the worlds cocaine market
and, for being directly responsible for the growth of the cocaine market in Europe, controlling 90% of the market. By the
mid 1990's the trafficking empire of the Cali Cartel was a multi-billion dollar enterprise.

YAKUZA

Most Americans have heard of the Mafia, Lucky Luciano, Al Capone, and their "soldiers"-but
what about the Yamaguchi-go-i, Kazuo Taoka, Hideomi Oda, and their yakuza? The Yamaguchi gumi: (gumi means
"group") is a criminal orgarization that dominates the industrialized, densely
populated region extending from Kyoto through Osaka to Kobe, as well as Tokyo and most other major centers in Japan.
They are the largest boryokudan ("violent groups"), organizations that constitute Japanese organized crime. These
organizations have been in existence for about 300 years and have their roots in the Tokugawa period (1600-1850),
when Japan united under a central system of government. With the end of Japanese feudalism, samurais lost their role in
life, and many roamed the countryside as free-lance mercenaries S.ome 1975). The yakuza-masterless samurai,
26
unscrupulous itinerant peddlers, professional gamblers, and common criminals----eventually formed structured groups:
boryokudan.

Some feel that its members are descendents of the 17th-century kabuki-mono(crazy ones), outlandish samurai who
reveled in outlandish clothing and hair styles, spoke in elaborate slang, and carried unusually long swords in their belts. 
The kabuki-mono were also known ashatamoto-yakko (servants of the shogun).  During the Tokugawa era, an extended
period of peace in Japan, the services of these samurai were no longer needed, and so they became
leaderlessronin (wave men).  Without the guidance of a strong hand, they eventually shifted their focus from community
service to theft and mayhem.

Modern yakuza members refute this theory and instead proclaim themselves to be the descendents of the machi-
yokko (servants of the town) who protected their villages from the wayward hatamoto-yakko.  The official yakuza history
portrays the group's ancestors as underdog folk heroes who stood up for the poor and the defenseless, just as Robin
Hood helped the peasants of medieval England.

Current yakuza members fall under three general categories: tekiya (street peddlers), bakuto(gamblers),

and gurentai (hoodlums).  The peddlers and gamblers trace their roots back to the 18th century while the hoodlums came
into existence after World War II when the demand for black market goods created a booming industry.  Traditionally
the tekiya, medieval Japan's version of snake-oil salesmen, worked the fairs and markets while the bakuto worked the
towns and highways.  Thegurentai, by contrast, modeled themselves on American gangsters of the Al Capone era, using
threats and extortion to achieve their ends.  After World War II, in the governmental power void caused by the Occupation,
the gurentai prospered, and their ranks swelled.  They also brought organized crime in Japan to a new level of violence,
replacing the traditional sword with modern firearms, even though guns were now officially outlawed in the country as a
result of the surrender.

The yakuza are proud to be outcasts, and the word yakuza reflects the group's self-image as society's rejects.  In regional
dialect ya means 8, ku means 9, and sa means 3, numbers that add up to 20, which is a losing hand in the card
game hana-fuda (flower cards).  The yakuza are the "bad hands of society," a characterization they embrace in the same
way that American bikers prominently tattoo the slogan "Born to Lose" on their biceps.

Like the Mafia, the yakuza power structure is a pyramid with a patriarch on top and loyal underlings of various rank below
him.  The Mafia hierarchy is relatively simple.  The capo (boss) rules the family with the assistance of his underboss
and consigliere (counselor).  On the next level, captains run crews of soldiers who all have associates (men who have not
been officially inducted into the Mafia) to do their bidding. 

The yakuza system is similar but more intricate.  The guiding principle of the yakuza structure is theoyabun-
kobun relationship.  Oyabun literally means "father role"; kobun means "child role."  When a man is accepted into the
yakuza, he must accept this relationship.  He must promise unquestioning loyalty and obedience to his boss. 
The oyabun, like any good father, is obliged to provide protection and good counsel to his children.  However, as the old
Japanese saying states, "If your boss says the passing crow is white, then you must agree."  As the yakuza put it,
a kobun must be willing to be ateppodama (bullet) for his oyabun.

The levels of management within the yakuza structure are much more complex than the Mafia's.  Immediately under
the kumicho (supreme boss) are the saiko komon (senior adviser) and the so-honbucho (headquarters chief). 
The wakagashira (number-two man) is a regional boss responsible for governing many gangs; he is assisted by the fuku-
honbucho, who is responsible for several gangs of his own.  A lesser regional boss is a shateigashira, and he commonly
has a shateigashira-hosa to assist him.  A typical yakuza crime family will also have dozens of shatei (younger brothers) 
and many wakashu (junior leaders).

If a yakuza member displeases or severely disappoints his boss, the punishment is often yubizume, the amputation of the
last joint of the little finger.  A second offense will require the severing of the second joint of that finger, and additional
offenses might require moving on to the next finger.  A man knows that he must commit yubizume when his immediate
superior gives him a knife and a string to staunch the bleeding.  Words are not necessary.  The origin of this practice
dates back to the days of the samurai.  Removing part of the smallest finger weakens the hand for holding the sword. 
When akatana (the samurai long sword) is gripped properly, the pinkie is the strongest finger.  The ring finger is the
second strongest, middle finger third strongest, and the index finger does almost nothing.  With a damaged hand, the
swordsman became  more dependent on his master for protection.  Today this ritual maiming is entirely symbolic, but it
serves to make a point with delinquent kobun, and it shows that the yakuza, like their Mafia counterparts, abide by the old
saying: "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer."

TRIADS, TONGS, AND ASIAN GANGS

Secret societies have a long history in China, some dating back to the beginning of the common era (Fong 1981; Chin
1990). An important part of these societies is the Triads and their American offshoots-tongs and Chinatown gangs. The

27
Chinese concept of qinqing parallels that of the southern Italian famiglia. Family, the primary and most important group to
a Chinese individual, "seryes as the crucible for formation of the ideals of harmonious social relations and the model for
social interaction. It is an association composed of parental and filial bonds carrying the strongest obligations of mutual
recrprocity (qinqing)." All family resources "are pooled and shared according to apparent or expressed need. Each
member is obligated to contribute to the family as able and the family is obligated to provide each member with the
resources for living" (Myers 1995:4). The pooling of familial resources has advanced the business interests of overseas
Chinese in the many communities where they have settled.'
Triads

The term triad refers a colrunon Chinese symbol: an equilateral triangle representing the three basic Chinese concepts of
heaven, earth, and man. Triad members are assigned numbers based on their position. For example, enforcers or "Red
Poles" are assigned number 426; an ordinary member is a 49;
a leader or "Hill Chief is 489. Based on ancient occult numerology, assigned numbers always begin a 4 . These groups,
based in Hong Kong and Taiwan, engage in highly ritualized dress and behavior-secret hand signs, passwords, and blood
oaths are used in elaborate initiation ceremonies. The initiation ceremony includes the recital of the Triads' 36 oaths, each
of
which ends with the death penalty for its violation. For example, "If I am arrested after committing an offense, I must
accept my punishment and not try to place blame on my sworn brothers. If I do so, I will be killed by five thunderbolts"
(Carter 1991b). The ceremony may take six or seven hours (Booth 1990).

THE MAJOR TRIADS

Sung Lian Strength: several hundred members, mostly second-and third-generation mainland immigrants. Activities: debt
collection, massage parlors, brothels, small businesses. Tian Dao Man Strength: several hundred members, mostly native
Taiwanese. Activities: debt collection, massage parlors, brothels, small businesses.

Four Seas Strength: up to 2,000 members, mostly second-and third-generation mainland immigrants. Activities:
construction, security services, debt collection, massage parlors, brothels, small businesses.

United Bamboo Strength: 10,000 members, mostly second-and third-generation mainland immigrants. Activities:
construction, security services, debt collection, loan sharking, gambling dens, hostess clubs, restaurants, small
businesses.

Tongs

The term tong means "hall" or "gathering place." Tongs were first established in San Francisco in the 1850s as benevolent
societies (Chin, Kelly, and Fagan 1994). Some Chinese immigrants,like Sicilian immigrants who had been mafiosi, were
Triad members at home. In the United States, they engaged in organized criminal activities, parricularly opium trafficking,
prosrirution, gambling, and extortion. While most tongs were business, fraternal, or political in character, the "fighting
tongs" licensed llegal businesses and were part of a tight-knit nationwide alliance. Therefore, a purely local dispute
between fighting tongs "could and often did precipitate a fight between afEliates in every U.S. Chinatown" (-ight 1977
472). During the last decade of the nineteenth century and the first two decades of the twentieth, tong wars occurred on
both the east and west coasts.
In New York in 1909, a tong war between the On Leong ("Peaceful Dragon") and Hip Sing ("Prosperous IJnion") claimed
an estimated 350 lives (Sante l99l). As the importance of gambling and house prostitution in Chinatowns declined
following World War I, vice entrepreneurs discovered the profitability of tourist enterprises, and restaurants replaced the
brothels and gambling halls. Nevertheless, the struggle between the On Leong and Hip Sing to control vice operations in
New York's Chinatown continued into the 1930s. Contemporary tongs such as the Hip Sing and the On Leong have
dropped the term from their names because of its association with "tong wars" (Chin 1990).

THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE

The Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia encompasses approximately 150,000 square miles of
forested highlands, including the western fringe of Laos, the four northem provinces of Thailand, and the northeastern
parts of Myanmar (Burma). Myanmar accounts for about 90 percent of the total heroin production of the Golden triangle.

GOLDEN CRESCENT

The Golden Crescent is the name given to one of Asia's two principal areas of illicit opium production, located at the
crossroads of Central, South, and Western Asia. This space overlaps three nations, Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan,

28
whose mountainous peripheries define the crescent, though only Afghanistan and Pakistan produce opium, with Iran
being a consumer and trans-shipment route for the smuggled opiates.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) heroin production estimates for the past 10 years show
significant changes in the primary source areas. Heroin production in Southeast Asia declined dramatically, while heroin
production in Southwest Asia expanded.In 1991, Afghanistan became the world's primary opium producer, with a yield of
1,782 metric tons (U.S. State Department estimates), surpassing Myanmar, formerly the world leader in opium production.
The decrease in heroin production from Myanmar is the result of several years of unfavorable growing conditions and new
government policies of forced eradication.Afghan heroin production increased during the same time frame, with a notable
decrease in 2001 allegedly as a result of the Taliban's fatwa against heroin production. Afghanistan now produces over
90% of the world's opium.In addition to opiates, Afghanistan is also the world's largest producer of hashish.

OUTLAW MOTORCYCLE CLUBS

An outlaw motorcycle club (sometimes known as a motorcycle gang) is a type of motorcycle club that is part of a
subculture with roots in the post-WWII USA, centered on cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-
Davidsons and choppers, and a set of ideals celebrating freedom, nonconformity to mainstream culture, and loyalty to
the biker group. 

Organization and leadership

The typical internal organization of a motorcycle club consists of a president, vice president, treasurer, secretary, road
captain, and sergeant-at-arms. Localized groups of a single, large MC are called chapters, and the first chapter
established for an MC is referred to as the mother chapter. The president of the mother chapter serves as the
president of the entire MC, and sets club policy on a variety of issues. Larger motorcycle clubs often acquire real
estate for use as a clubhouse or private compound.

Membership
In some "biker" clubs, as part of becoming a full member, an individual must pass a vote of the membership
and swear some level of allegiance to the club. Some clubs have a unique club patch (or patches) adorned with the
term MC that are worn on the rider's vest, known as colors. The oldest motorcycle clubs in the U.S. are the Yonkers
MC, founded in 1903, the San Francisco MC, founded 1904, and the Oakland MC.A formal induction follows, in which
the new member affirms his loyalty to the club and its members. The final logo patch is then awarded. Full members
are often referred to as "full patch members" and the step of attaining full membership can be referred to as "being
patched."

Colors
The primary visual identification of a member of an outlaw MC is the vest adorned with a specific large club patch
or patches, predominantly located in the middle of the back.
The patch(es) will contain a club logo, the name of the club, and the letters MC, and a possible state, province, or
other chapter identification. This garment and the patches themselves are referred to as the colors or cut (a term
taken from the early practice of cutting the collars and/or sleeves from a denim or leather jacket). 

There are also wings or biker's wings which are earned something like jump wings or pilot's wings, but with various
gruesome, color-coded meanings. An outlaw biker who has had sex with a woman with venereal disease can
wear green wings, while purple wings indicate having had sex with a corpse,yellow for having drunk female urine, red
for having oral sex with a menstruating woman.The significance of wings are twofold: to demonstrate the member's
low regard for women, and serve as a proclamation that the wearer is not a policeman (on the assumption that police
would not stoop to such behavior)

Top 10 Notorious American Biker Gangs

1. HELL’S ANGELS ('HAMC') is a controversial, world-wide, one-percenter motorcycle club whose members

traditionally ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
The HAMC epitomizes the term ''motorcycle club'' and it has many supporters and detractors.In the United States,
and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the 'Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation'.

Their insignia is the “death’s head” logo which is copied from the insignia of the 85th Fighter Squadron and the 552nd
Medium Bomber Squadron.
Red lettering over white backgrounds stands for the club’s colors.
With so much popularity, Hell’s Angels chapters have sprung up across the Untied States as well as Russia and New
Zealand and the continents of North America, South America, Europe and Australia.

Sonny Barger ,the legendary founder and conspicuous spokesman of the Oakland Hells 
In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation. Their
primary motto is "When we do right, nobody remembers. When we do wrong, nobody forgets".

29
The group says a typical member rides 20,000 miles a year, usually on the Angels' preferred machines, Harley-
Davidsons. And members still refer to themselves as "one percenters" — a half-century-old boast playing off the
saying that 1% of troublemakers give a bad name to 99% of respectable bikers.Some members also wear a patch
with the initials "AFFA", which stands for "Angels Forever; Forever Angels", referring to their lifelong membership in
the biker club (i.e., "once a member, always a member").

Membership
The full requirements to become a Hells Angel are the following: candidates must be male,
have a valid driver's licence,
have a working motorcycle and
cannot be a child molester or
have applied to become a police officer or prison guard
After a lengthy, phased process, a prospective member is first deemed to be a 'Hang-around', indicating that the
individual is invited to some club events or to meet club members at known gathering places.
If the Hang-around is interested, he may be asked to become an 'Associate', a status that usually lasts a year or two.
At the end of that stage, he is reclassified as 'Prospect', participating in some club activities, but not having voting
privileges, while he is evaluated for suitability as a full member.
The last phase, and highest membership status, is 'Full Membership' or 'Full-Patch'.

2. MONGOLS
The Mongols, also known as Mongol Nation or Mongol Brotherhood, were formed in 1969 in Montebello, California
from Hispanic bikers who were refused entry into The Hell’s Angels MC due to their race. Their colors are black and
white and their insignia bears the name Mongols in large black letters above a pony-tail sporting man riding a
motorcycle wearing a leather vest and sunglasses while carrying a scimitar or cutlass. Mongol chapters are
concentrated in the western United States, but have also opened in Canada, Mexico and Italy. Law enforcement
officials estimate there are approximately 500 to 600 full patched members.

The Mongols' main presence is in southern California, with charters in 14 states, as well as international charters in
Germany, Italy, and Mexico. The Mongols have a long standing friendship with the Outlaws MC.

Operation Black Rain

As part of the operation, four agents became patched members of the club.
In the end, a large indictment was issued to over 50 members, including senior leaders of the club Operation Black
Rain resulted in the arrest of 38 members of the Mongols motorcycle club, including the club's president, Ruben "Doc"
Cavazos.Federal authorities also served over 160 search warrants in California, Ohio, Colorado, Nevada,
Washington, and Oregon.A total of 110 arrest warrants were carried out in the operation.
The US government also issued a court order to prohibit the use of the Mongols MC logo and emblem. One effect of
this prohibition is that the traditional vest with emblem can no longer be worn.

The Mongols members have had long-running confrontations with law enforcement in such areas as drug dealing
(especially methamphetamine), money laundering, robbery, extortion, firearms violations, murder and assault, among
other crimes

3. PAGANS
The Pagans formed in Maryland in 1959 and by 1965 had expanded rapidly.
Their patch depicts the Norse fire giant Surtr sitting on the sun wielding a sword with the wordPagans in red, white
and blue. Members are known to wear their patches on cut-off denim jackets with accompanying white supremacist
and Nazi insignia patches.
The club’s members have also been seen with tattoos of ARGO (Ar Go Fuck Yourself) and NUNYA (Nun’Ya Fuckin’
Business).

Their territory seems to be confined strictly to the eastern coast in the United States.
The Pagans Motorcycle Club is a one-percenter motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate formed by Lou
Dobkin (or Dobkins) in 1959 in Prince George's County, Maryland.
Known simply as The Pagans colloquially, the club rapidly expanded and by 1965, the Pagans, originally clad in blue
denim jackets and riding Triumphs, began to evolve along the lines of the stereotypical one percenter motorcycle club.
Recently, the Pagans' membership has begun to decline as their rival Hells Angels’ membership has grown.
 Pagans have approximately 350 to 400 members and 44 chapters and are active along the East Coast of the United
States. Chapters are common in Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina and West
Virginia. The Pagans have a Mother Club or ruling council which ultimately rules the gang. The Pagans headquarters
is currently in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.

Members must be at least 21 years old and owners of Harley-Davidson motorcycles with engines 900 cc or larger.
The national sergeant-at-arms' responsibility is to hand-pick 13 chapter members to serve as the "enforcers" or
"regulators". This body uses violence and intimidation to prevent any and all opposition to the Mother Club.

4. THE OUTLAWS
The Outlaw Motorcycle Club is one of the more notorious and oldest clubs on this list.
The gang started in Matilda’s Bar on old Route 66 in McCook, IL in 1935. Using the insignia on Marlon Brando’s
leather jacket in The Wild One as inspiration, the club adopted the skull with cross pistons as their official club patch.
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Since the club began over 70 years ago their chapters have spread widely across the United States and have been
well established in Australia, Asia, Europe and North and South America.

Harry Joseph Bowman, The World Leader of The American Outlaw Association (A.O.A.), was the international
president of The Outlaws Motorcycle Club and presided over 30 chapters in the U.S. and 20 chapters in 4 other
countries until he was sent to prison for 3 murders in 1999 after being on the F.B.I’s Top 10 Most Wanted Fugitive list
in 1998.
Across the globe members of The Outlaws have been suspected, arrested, tried and convicted of countless crimes
from prostitution, trafficking in narcotics and stolen goods, arms dealing, extortion and murder.

The Outlaws Motorcycle Club, incorporated as the American Outlaws Association or its acronym, A.O.A., is a one-
percenter motorcycle gang and organized crimesyndicate that was formed in McCook, Illinois in 1935. It has
approximately 90 chapters in the United States, Canada, Australia, Asia, and Europe.

5. Sons of silence
The Sons of Silence are another “1%er” motorcycle gang that was founded in Niwot, Colorado in 1966 and featured in
a 2009 episode of Gangland on The History Channel.
Since 1966 The Sons of Silence have spread across the United States, with concentrations in the eastern U.S. They
also have several chapters spread throughout Germany.
The Sons of Silence have adopted the motto “Donec Mors Non Seperat”, which is Latin for “Until Death Separates
Us”.

The club patch has been adopted from the American Eagle logo used by the Budweiser beer company and bears an
eagle superimposed over the letter A with their motto underneath.
In October of 1999, 37 members of the Sons of Silence were arrested on drug trafficking and illegal weapons charges
during one of Denver’s largest federal undercover operations. During the raids,

The ATF seized 20 lbs. of methamphetamine, 35 firearms, four hand grenades, 2 silencers as well as cash and
motorcycles. a one-percenter motorcycle gang  That was founded in Niwot, Colorado in the United States in 1966.
The first chapter outside of Colorado was the Iowa chapter which was founded in 1968. There are now American
chapters in Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Dakota
and Wyoming.The first foreign chapter was founded in Munich, Germany in 1998. In 2001, more German chapters
were founded inFreising, Gangkofen and Nuremberg. In November 2007, a Viernheim chapter was founded.

6. Warlock
The Warlocks were founded in 1967 in Philadelphia, PA and gained a large number of members after the end of the
Vietnam War. Consisting only of white males, The Warlocks have spread through the state of Pennsylvania and a
good portion of the northeastern United States and also have chapters in the southeast United States as well as
overseas in Germany and England.

Their club colors are red and white and they use the Greek mythological figure of a winged Harpy as their insignia.
Members often adorn themselves and their vests with white supremacy insignia as well.

In 2008, Tommy Zaroff, a former President of the Bucks County, PA chapter was arrested on suspicion of possessing
10 pounds of methamphetamine. In October of the same year four members of The Warlocks were arrested and
charged with producing, transporting and distributing methamphetamine throughout Berks and Montgomery Counties
in Pennsylvania.
It is alleged that they sold over 500 lbs. of methamphetamine worth approximately $9 million. The Warlocks
Motorcycle Club is "one-percenter" motorcycle gang that was formed in Philadelphia,Pennsylvania in 1967.

It was the first official outlaw motorcycle club founded in Pennsylvania. and there are now chapters throughout the
Pennsylvania, New Jersey,Massachusetts, Ohio, Illinois, Florida, and Minnesota. They bear "colors" that are unique
to the other Warlocks organizations and are the first of the known Warlocks to possess the 1%er diamond patch, worn
on their "colors" over their hearts.

The club's insignia is a Harpy, a legendary winged creature in Greek mythology, and their colors are red and white.
The club expanded rapidly at the end of the Vietnam War when thousands of ex-soldiers returned to the United
States, many to Pennsylvania, feeling outcast from society. Members of the club must be White males.
Florida Warlocks

The club was established by Tom "Grub" Freeland an ex-US Navy sailor, on the outskirts of Orlando, Florida in 1967
and the Mother Chapter is still based there.
They have over nine chapters in Florida, five in South Carolina, four in Virginia, three in West Virginia, one in New
York, two in Lincolnshire, England and two in Germany.
There are also several Nomads who live and work in states that don't have Warlocks chapters.

The club's insignia is a Phoenix sandwiched between the top and bottom rockers, and their colors are black, red and
yellow. Their mottos include "To find us... you must be good, to catch us... you must be fast, to beat us... you must be
kidding" and "Warlocks forever, forever Warlocks" ("W.F.F.W.").

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7. Highwaymen
The Highwaymen were formed in Detroit, MI in 1954. Their chapters have spread across the state of Michigan as well
as other U.S. states and have reached as far as Norway and England. Their club colors are black and silver and their
insignia is a winged skeleton wearing a motorcycle cap and a leather jacket.

The Highwaymen also have their own mottos which are: “Highwaymen Forever, Forever Highwaymen” and “Yea,
though we ride the highways in the shadows of death, we fear no evil, for we are the most evil mother fuckers on the
highway.”
The club has undergone a number of large-scale police and FBI investigations, most notably in 1973, 1987 and 2007.
 James Blake Miller, the "Marlboro Marine" is a member of the Kentucky Highwaymen, many of whom, like Miller, are
veterans suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder.
Despite being the largest motorcycle club in the city of Detroit, they are not acknowledged in the Detroit Federation of
Motorcycle Clubs due to their violent and criminal reputation.
In May 2007, after a two year investigation into the gang’s activities, the FBI raided homes and chapter clubhouses
resulting in the arrests of 40 Highwaymen and associates.
The charges included insurance and mortgage frauds, murder for hire, cocaine trafficking, police corruption and
racketeering.

8. Bandidos
Founded in San Antonio, TX in 1966 The Bandidos are among the more notorious of American Motorcycle Clubs. The
gang’s patch bears a cartoon-ishly obese Mexican wearing a large sombrero and carrying a machete in one hand and
a pistol in the other.
The colors of gold and red were adopted as the club’s colors due to the fact that their founder was a former Vietnam
Marine veteran.

The Bandidos have around 90 chapters spread across the U.S. alone, but they have also branched out as far as Asia,
Germany and Australia. Organized crime syndicate with a worldwide membership. The club was formed in 1966 by
Don Chambers in Texas.
Its slogan is We are the people our parents warned us about. It is estimated to have 2,400 members in 210 chapters,
located in 16 countries.

The club considers itself to be an Outlaw Motorcycle Club. The Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as the Criminal
Intelligence Service Canada have named the Bandidos an Outlaw Motorcycle Gang.

The club was formed in 1966 in San Leon, Texas by Donald Eugene Chambers.
Many people think Chambers named his club the Bandidos after seeing a TV commercial with theFrito Bandito raising
hell to sell Fritos corn chips.

This is not true, as the cartoon came out in 1968 (although he did adopt an obese machete- and pistol-wielding
Mexican Bandido as the center patch for the club's colors).
Don Chambers, having served in Vietnam as a Marine, modeled the clubs colors after the scarlet and gold motif of
the United States Marine Corps. After Chambers' presidency ended
due to his conviction for murder in El Paso, Texas, Ronnie Hodge was elevated to president.

The Bandidos also have a number of puppet, or so-called "support," clubs, who are used as proxies for both legal and
illegal activities.These groups usually wear reverse colors (gold border with red background rather than the Bandidos'
red-border–and–gold background).
They also commonly wear a unique patch (known as the "Heart Patch") consisting of a round patch in Bandidos
colors on the front upper left of the colors (vest), as worn by the member. Most of these clubs are regional.

The Bandidos gang has a long and brutal history of illegal activity. A member of The Bandidos was arrested, tried and
convicted of the 2006 murder of a well known flyweight boxer and a member of the rival Hell’s Angels Motorcycle Club
was sniped while leaving a restaurant in March of that same year during The Bandidos 40th Anniversary of the clubs
annual birthday celebration. Police suspect that members of The Bandidos are responsible for the murder. Other
members have been arrested from anything from murder to drugs and illegal weapons possession as well as assault
and racketeering charges.

9. Free souls
This particular motorcycle gang was started in the state of Oregon in the late 1960’s.
Their patch consists of an ankh, an ancient Egyptian symbol in the shape of a cross, in the center of a motorcycle rim
and tire. All of their chapters, with the exception of one in Vancouver, Canada, are located within the state of Oregon.
On May 2, 2007, three members of The Free Souls Motorcycle Club were arrested and charged with various crimes.
Amongst the evidence were illegal drugs, weapons and stolen motorcycles all of which were seized as part of the
investigation and arrests.
The club's insignia is an ankh, the ancient Egyptian symbol of eternal life, and their "colors" are blue and white.It is
one of the "big five" motorcycle clubs in Oregon, alongside the Vagos, Brother Speed, Gypsy Jokers and the
Outsiders.

10. Vagos
The Vagos Motorcycle Club was started in San Bernardino, CA in the 1960’s.
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Members of the club often wear green and bear a patch of the Norse god Loki riding a motorcycle. The club has
approximately 24 chapters spread across the western United States in states such as Arizona and Nevada and also 3
in Mexico.The gang originally was called "the Psychos".

The club's insignia is Loki, the Norse god of mischief, riding a motorcycle and members commonly wear green.The
Vagos have been the subject of several investigations by the FBI and the ATF for illegal activity such as the
production and distribution of methamphetamine, murder, money laundering and weapons violations. A highly
coordinated investigation in March of 2006 led to the arrests of 25 Vagos members and their associates in what has
been labeled as the largest investigation in Southern California’s history.

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