1. Geography and Crime Dr Tim Hall
Department of Natural and Social Sciences
University of Gloucestershire

2. Key Points Deviance and crime are enduring geographical concerns
Geographers engagement with crime has been partial / limited
Crime is a significant aspect of contemporary globalisation worthy of geographical attention
Timely to broaden geographers’ engagement with crime through a dialogue with criminology

3. Deviance and crime: enduring geographical concerns
University of Chicago Department of Sociology (1913)
Robert Park / Ernest Burgess
Crime, deviance, gangs, urban pathologies, ethnicity, poverty.
The criminogenic city

4. Deviance and crime: enduring geographical concerns
Postmodern urbanism: the carceral / paranoid / fortress city
The Los Angeles School:
Mike Davis
Ed Soja
Michael Dear

5. Geographies of Crime
1970s mapping the location of offences – situational crime prevention (designing out crime)
Geographical information systems
Location of offenders residences – neighbourhood effects / criminogenic communities
1980s / 1990s: fear of crime

6. Failure to recognise presence of illicit actors in many processes studied by geographers:
Globalisation (organised criminal groups)
Environmental degradation (illegal logging)
Urban development in developing countries (organised criminal groups)
Mineral exploitation financing conflicts / civil war (DRC – transnational mafias, warlords, militias)

7. ARE YOU CONNECTED?

8. Coltan

9. Democratic Republic of Congo
Civil war 1998 
Approx. 7 million killed
Largest conflict since World War II
95% of world’s coltan mined in DRC

11. Question 1
According to the journalist Misha Glenny in his book McMafia what proportion of global economic activity is accounted for by organised crime?
A) 5 %
B) 15 %
C) 1 %
D) 45 %

12. Organised crime = 15% of global gross domestic product – (Misha Glenny, (2008) McMafia: Crime without Frontiers)
Drug trafficking estimated - 8 % of world trade
Money laundering estimated 2 – 5 % of global GDP. Some estimates 10 %
Estimates: 4 – 5 million people trafficked each year = profits of up to US$9.5 billion

13. Question 2
What countries are the following three organised crime syndicates associated with? The Triads; the Camorra; the Yakuza.
Russia, Colombia and China
Angola, Mexico and the UK
China, Italy and Japan
USA, Jamaica and Italy

14. The nature of criminal organisations
Characteristics of organised crime:
Continuing organised structure
Profit through crime
Use of force or threat
Corruption to maintain immunity
Public demand for services
Monopoly over particular markets
Restricted membership

15. Images of organised crime

16. Images of organised crime
“The film of Gomorrah is savage, squalid, claustrophobic and relentless. The action is authentic, in gratifying contrast to the grotesque romance of films like The Godfather.” (Vulliamy, 2008: 10)

17. Activities of criminal organisations
Trafficking
drugs (narcotics),
weapons
people (illegal immigrants, women and children),
pharmaceuticals,
nuclear materials,
other: body parts, metals, precious stones / natural resources, stolen cars, art, antiques, rare animals and counterfeit goods

18. Activities of criminal organisations
Provision and control of illicit services, most notably, gambling and prostitution
Cybercrime, robbery, kidnapping, extortion, corruption, piracy
Crimes against the environment
Money laundering
Terrorism

19. The nature of criminal organisations
Different structures for different activities
Robbery – small tightly knit group
Smuggling – network with cellular structure
Trafficking -big organisation / armed militias
(from Serious Organised Crime Agency 2006)

20. Question 3
Look at the map of the global criminal economy (next slide). What are the main patterns that you can observe from this? You will have four choices.

21. Organised crime in the global economy (Van Dijk, 2007)

22. Question 3 Organised crime is distributed evenly around the world
Organised crime is only found in the less developed world
Organised crime is found mainly in Russia and Italy
Organised crime is distributed unevenly around the world

23. Organised crime in the global economy
‘Mobbed up’ regions
Weak rule of law (i.e. failed and transitional states)
Distrust of the state (i.e. Italy, Mexico)
Inaccessible terrain (i.e. Peru)
Corruption
Easy access to weapons
Technological advances
Transnational networks

24. ‘Mobbed up’ regions
Afghanistan - heroin production = 50% GNP  serious impacts on sovereignty and democracy (Aas, 2007: 125);

25. ‘Mobbed up’ regions
Colombia: (1999) US$3.5 billion from cocaine exports = oil exports; more than twice as much as coffee exports (Bagley, 2005: 38)

26. ‘Mobbed up’ regions
British Columbia (Canada): Cannabis production 5 % GNP; employment for = twice as many as logging, mining, oil and gas production (Glenny, 2008b; 2008c)

27. Crime and the process of globalisation
Globalisation and liberalisation of the world economy facilitated organised crime
Deregulation of world banking system - money laundering
Technology – cybercrime / money laundering
Increased border security – people trafficking
Creation of spaces for illicit activities (offshore financial centres)
Growing global inequalities

28. Question 4
What are the names of Springfield Mafia boss ‘Fat Tony’s’ henchmen in The Simpsons?
A) Spider, Little Tony and El Barto
B) Snake, Lenny, Lou and Gil
C) Legs, Louie, Icepick, and Johnny Tightlips
D) Diamond Joe, Carl, and Snowflake

29. Scores = Italian Mafia Ranks
4 correct = Godfather or boss of bosses
3 correct = Capo Bastone or Underboss: 2nd in command
2 correct = Caporegime or Lieutenant
1 correct = Piciotto: Lower-ranking soldiers; enforcers
0 correct = A life of crime is not for you