The World Becomes More Globalized And The Internet

However with recent crime technology, changes in information management and information communications technology (ICT) they have been able to identify “trends, including hotspots, emerging crime groups and targets” (Chantler and Throne 2009, p. 127) and become more proactive in the field. With the growth of organised and transnational crime, intelligence-led policing is the best methodology to effectively combat organised and transnational organised crime (Bell and Congram 2013). Bell and Congram (2013, p. 19) states that transnational organised crime are “vulnerable to detection and disruption because of their communication” thus the use of information communications technology in intelligence-led practices helps reduce the risk of an intelligence attack (Waters, Ball & Dudgeon, 2008; Jackson et al.,

In our reading of Illicit by Naim (2005), he suggests that the asymmetrical relationship between the government and transnational crime groups create a struggle for the government to respond to these transnational crimes at a decent rate (Naim,2005). On the other side our reading in McMafia: A Journey Through the Global Criminal Underworld by Glenny (2009), suggest otherwise. Glenny (2009) suggests that of a relationship between transnational crime groups, the public, the government and this is a huge aspect to how the government responds to these factors. Both perspectives contain their strengths and weaknesses, however the dependency theory by Glenny has more valid points than that of the asymmetrical theory by Naim.

The United States Department of State classifies 58 different organizations as foreign terrorist organizations (US DOS). Of those 58 FTOs only one is located in South America, and none are located in Mexico. Despite the lack of official FTOs in Mexico, non-state violence is at an all-time high and the country is more dangerous than ever. This is because of the presence and prevalence of drug cartels throughout the country. These drug cartels employ violent tactics as part of their drug trafficking network. But these cartels are more than just criminal organizations. The scope of the violence, the fear they instill in the population, and the influence they have on policy shows that these organizations should be considered as more than petty criminals trying to make money. While economic gain remains one of the main goals of these groups, there is much that falls under the umbrella of terrorism.

The purpose behind this research paper is to analyze how transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) are able to exploit the land and sea borders of the United States in order to produce billions of dollars annually. There will be a background completed not on just one specific TCO but the ways that these organizations produce substantial amounts of money. The methods in which they conduct their operations utilizing border crossings or getting through sea ports, as well. Then, finally, an overview on how these TCOs exploit the vulnerabilities of the United States law enforcement agencies and the security personal that are in place to protect the citizens of America from the illicit activities of these TCOs.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation Domestic•(FBI) categorizes terrorism in the U.S. as one of two types: Terrorism – is terrorist activities that focus on facilities or populations without foreign direction. International Terrorism – is terrorist activities that are foreign‐based and/or sponsored by organizations or groups outside the U.S (). International terrorism poses the greatest threat to our national security. Global trends indicate that the growing number of terrorist groups will become more networked and even harder to identify and

Federal and State actually did a little to combat organized crime until fairly recently. One of the first measures aimed directly at organize crime was the interstate and Foreign travel or transportation in Aid of Racketeering enterprises Act. ("Opening Statement", 2000). However, the convergence in many ways of organized criminal activity, including drug trafficking and terrorism, is a growing concern to the United States and the world. Some experts in the field suggest that in a growing number of cases organized crime and terrorism are being jointly orchestrated, and that this trend can be developing into a global phenomenon. If true, we face a significant new challenge from both law enforcement and national security perspectives.

After 9/11, a realization emerged that there was a disconnect between domestic intelligence related to criminal investigations and foreign intelligence. This disconnect manifested due to erroneous perceptions and beliefs within national security circles that foreign intelligence could not be shared with criminal investigators (The 9/11 Commssion, 2004, p.79). The result of this disconnect was that relevant information from the CIA and NSA related to terrorism was not disseminated to criminal investigators (The 9/11 Commission, 2004, p.79). Al Qaeda was able to exploit the discordance between domestic and foreign intelligence as evidenced by the successful execution of the 9/11 attacks. The intrinsic connection between domestic and foreign intelligence is illustrated by what is referred to as the “lone wolf” terror threat. While an Islamist lone wolf terrorist may become self-radicalized on the U.S. mainland, what inspires and motivates such terrorists is not indigenous in origin. Although terror attacks executed by lone wolf terrorists are not directly coordinated by Islamist terror entities, their points of origin can be traced overseas because Islamist terror entities that are catalysts for such attacks are based in foreign countries. Thus, the CIA and other agencies that produce foreign intelligence on the Islamist terror threat must pass on that information to the FBI, DHS, and other federal agencies that deal with domestic intelligence. In turn, federal domestic intelligence agencies must provide that information to agencies at the state, local, and tribal levels via fusion centers, JCAT, and other related entities. The integration of foreign and domestic intelligence cannot be achieved without substantial information-sharing and coordination among government

The Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, describes the global jihadist movement as one of “Lone wolves, domestic extremists and jihadist inspired groups” that are determined to attack western interests. A 2014-RAND study describes terrorist organizations relying on affiliates, allies and the ability to inspire homegrown violent extremists. Another report stated that 42 of the 50 known terrorist plots since 9/11 were homegrown. Moreover, diasporas spread across the U.S. are subject to persuasion from web-based propaganda that seeks to exploit, recruit and fundraise among immigrant populations. Last, terrorist organizations will likely exploit the criminal activities of Mexico’s cartels as well as America’s lose border

Both terrorist and transnational organized criminal groups utilize illegal activities to further their agendas and increase their coffers. Some of the methods employed are: kidnapping, drug trafficking, and human trafficking. Recently these two groups have begun working together to accomplish their goals. There has been evidence that organized crime groups have provided logistical support to terrorists (Rollins & Wyler, 2013). The collaboration of these two groups strengthens both groups exponentially. But the organized crime groups, on most occasions, do not share the same ideological views as the terrorist groups. They are in it for the money, and sometimes the risk of working with terrorists is too high.

In this research paper I will discuss one transnational crime, and compare the contrast of two nations for their definition of the crime rate, and tools used to measure the crime. I will give each country’s legal tradition and their major influences on crime definition, rate, and measurement. In this assignment I will analyze the extent to which crime statistics collected in different nations can adequately be compared.

By all means, existence of organized crime is an indicator of that the laws in the hosting country are not being executed well enough or that laws regulating such acts are not issued yet. In case of transnational organized crime, the scale of lawlessness is considerably higher since it takes place in several countries. This is the reason why transnational organized crime is the most developed in countries with weak legislation and law enforcement systems. Moreover, transnational organized crime involves systematic violence, which is destructive for the society. Either way, domestic organized crime and transnational organized crime are similar in how and why they operate, while the major difference between them is complexity of operations and their scale. While the phenomenon of transnational organized crime is based on domestic organized crime, there is also a possibility of their cooperation, which complicates the process of law enforcement. For instance, while transnational organizations can conduct drug trafficking, domestic organizations can cooperate with them as local distributors. This way, transnational organized crime tends to cover larger territories and cause even more

The problem encountered within my research is the connection between Drug Trafficking Organizations and Transnational Terror Organizations. The problem this poses is the potential threat to the United States in terms of the two organizations working in conjunction with one another and what this would entail for national security. What remains to be seen within the research question is how the two are defined or if there are even connections between the two. Within the articles of research, there are two different theories that are seen. One is the theory that the Drug trafficking organizations are in partnership with terror groups for drug smuggling as well as providing drugs. The other is that Terror groups are engaged in business with drug

Transnational crime offenders tend to be well trained and operate in structured groups they usually are headed by a powerful authoritative leader, and their intentions solely focused on making a profit from illegal activities, because these group sometimes spread their operations internationally they have become a threat

Transnational crime is identified as crimes that have real or probable effects across national borders as well as intrastate crimes but only those that offend the fundamental values of the international community. For as long as borders have separated neighboring countries transnational crime has existed, transnational crime is not new to the world. Transnational crime is new only in the range and scale of transnational criminal activity along with the increasing impact this type of crime has on the United States and surrounding countries. Due to increased opportunities criminal activity is being redistributed internationally. Crime activities within transnational crime has been globalized and include such crimes as corruption, money laundering,

Transnational crime is a growing problem. Transnational crime is defined as “self-perpetuating associations of individuals who operate transnational for the purpose of obtaining power, influence, monetary and/or commercial gains, wholly or in part by illegal means, while protecting their activities through a pattern of corruption and/ or violence, or while protecting their illegal activities through a transnational structure and the exploitation of transnational commerce or communication mechanisms.” (National Security Council, n.d.) . Transnational crimes are known under other names such as cross-national crime, global crime, international crime, and