Corruption & Organized Crime
By UN CICP
Corruption on the Palermo’s
Convention
Article 8
Criminalization of corruption
1. Each State Party shall adopt such legislative and other
measures as may be necessary to establish as criminal
offences, when committed intentionally:
(a) The promise, offering or giving to a public official, directly
or indirectly, of an undue advantage, for the official
himself or herself or another person or entity, in order that
the official act or refrain from acting in the exercise of his
or her official duties;
(b) The solicitation or acceptance by a public official, directly
or indirectly, of an undue advantage, for the official
himself or herself or another person or entity, in order that
the official act or refrain from acting in the exercise of his
or her official duties….
Organized Crime link to
Corruption
Organized Crime Group
Group of three or more persons that
exists during certain time. It acts by
previous agreement, with the objective
of commiting one or more serious
crimes (4 years of jail). With the aim of
obtaining financial or other material
benefit
O.C. links with Violence The O.C. Groups exert their powers
and Corruption
through the threat and use of violence
Information Centralized Systems used
against O.C. must:
 ID the organizational structure and the
“company” shape
 ID product/service offered
 ID and block modus operandi (supplying
logistic, production, marketing and financial
channels)
Different levels of relationship
between O.C. and Corruption
 1st Level: Bribery
 2nd Level: Continuous Acts of Bribery (“On
payroll”)
 3rd Level: Infiltration into Government Agencies
 4th Level: Infiltrating the Government (Higher
level)
 5th Level: Infiltrating the Political Arena
1st Level: Bribery
Organized Crime Group
Public Officer
 The bribe is
offered or solicited
for a single act.
 For example: to
obtain a passport,
licenses or to get
information
designed to enable
criminal
advantage.
Benefits of the Bribery Acts
 The O.C. Groups obtains an advantage





False identities and documents
Advance information about police activity
Manipulation of official records
Disappearing evidence
Access to jury identities
The “Custom” Case
Drug Trafficking
Cartel
Border
DRUG
Custom Officers
2nd Level: Continuous Acts of
Bribery (“On the Payroll”)
Organized Crime Group
Periodically
Public Officer
 Bribe payments are
ongoing.
 Ensures a
continuous flow of
information and
protection from
police intrusion
into criminal
activities.
Benefits of the Continuous
Bribery Acts
 O.C. Groups obtain constant access to
confidential information allowing them to
maintain patterns of illegal activity
 The O.C. Groups remain “one step ahead”
of Police
Measures to avoid the Bribery
Acts
 Strength the socio-economic status of public
officers with fair and competitive salaries
 Implement strong penalties for breaches of
public duties
 Encourage “whistle-blowers”
 Train and assign Integrity Officers to
corruption-prone government operations
 Reduce individual discretion
The “Informer” Case
Drug Lord
Information about:
• Court Orders
• Raid orders
• Operations
Military Officer
3rd Level: Infiltration Into
Government Agencies
(Operative Level)
Organized Crime Group
Member
Public Officer
 infiltration is
sporadic within
lower ranking
official positions.
 OC members and
friends gain
employment in
law enforcement
agencies,judiciary
Prosecutor’s
Office and other
operations.
How is Infiltration
Accomplished?
1) Applying for Job
Vacancies
The O.C. group supports
one or more members or
friends to participate and
apply for job vacancies
with the Government.
2) “Buying” the Job
The O.C. group bribes or
blackmails officials to
place its members and
friends in the government
post.
The Typical Case
Organized Crime
Group
Contracts
Local Governor
4th Level: Infiltrating the Government
(Medium-tactical Level)
Organized Crime Group
Higher Rank
Public Officer
 This infiltration can
encompass entire
branches or higher
ranking officers.
 Top Officials in Law
Enforcement,
Prosecutor’s Office
and other sensitive
government offices
are OC members.
Methods Used to Infiltrate the
higher levels of Government
1) Placement of
Corrupted Officers
into Higher Office
2) Control of the Chief
of Section/Region
The O.C. group use bribery and
blackmail to support Officers
previously corrupted by their
organization to higher ranks with
broader access to information.
This “support” is repaid to OC
with increased protection and
access to more useful secret
police information
Bribery, blackmail and coercion is
used to control the chief
decision-maker of an entire
branch of government.OC can
continue operating with very
little risk of discovery or
successful prosecution.
Benefits of the Infiltration of
O.C. Groups
 O.C. Groups need support from government
officials in order to maximize profits
 bribery and extortion are used to influence
police, judges and other key officials
 OC gains control over entire sectors of the
economy
The “General” Case
Drug Lord
Rival Drug
Cartels
BECAME
General
Head of a Military Region
Anti-Drug Zsar
The “Attaché” Case
Wife
Military Attache
to an Embassy
DRUG
Diplomatic Pouch
Organized Crime
Group
Measures to avoid the
Infiltration of O.C. Groups
 Transparency in the hiring process including
public notification of potential candidates.
 Strengthening promotional testing and strict
secrecy of test questions
 Vetting process thorough background
investigations and polygraph test (updated
financial statements, family ties, etc.)
 Public disclosure of assets
5th Level: Infiltrating the
Political Arena
Organized Crime Group
Congressmen
Ministers
Politicians
(Mayors, Governors,
etc.)
Law Enforcement
(For Security)
Democracy
 Inter-related mecanisms to translate
social preferences into public policies.
Grand Corruption
 Scale
 Actors
 State capture
Grand Corruption
 Budgets distorted
 Social investment reduced
 Access to the poor is hampered
 Hampers Democracy
Democracy
Grand Corruption
How is Political Infiltration
Accomplished?
 Participating in Political Campaigns (giving
money, media support and others)
 Buying votes for candidates and corrupting
the democratic election process
 Lobbying other politicians for support using
bribery and blackmail
 Exploiting O.C. Members’ family links
 Creating “debts” for politicians to “repay”
later by using blackmail and extortion
The “Representative” Case
Drug Trafficker
BECAME
Representative of National Security
CONTINUED
Drug Trafficking
The “Narco-campaign”Case
Drug Lord
Campaign Treasurer
Former Representative
Former Diplomat
Offer the Money
Presidential Candidate
The “Governor” Case
Drug Trafficker
BECAME
Senator
BECAME
CONTINUED
Drug Trafficking
Governor of Touristical State
The “Sixty-Million” Case
Drug Traffickers
Group
To let them “Work”
60
MM
US$
Politicians
Measures to avoid the Political
Infiltration of O.C. Groups
 The State should increase financial support of political
parties and campaigns
 Strengthening the laws of media concentrations, combating
monopolies
 Increasing the transparency of contributions
 Public disclosure of candidate background including
criminal records and links
 Strengthening banking and securities’ regulatory capacities
Best Practices in the
Eradication of Organized Crime
 An appropriate legal framework making it possible to fight OC
effectively by following the Palermo Convention standards -(e.g. bank
and securities regulations, witness protection laws, RICO-type statutes);
 Compatible-harmonized legal norms among states;
 Harmonize, enhance, and coordinate international law enforcement
efforts and capabilities;
 An informed media with the capacity to address the issue with
sophistication while promoting democratic approaches in the fight
against O.C.;
 An informed population ready to fight the issue. This includes the
development of significant literature to keep the citizenry informed;
 Schools incorporating civic tools into their curricula to counteract OC
activities;
The Link Between Organized Crime
and Rule of Law
Singapore
Norway
New
Zealand
United Kingdom
Sweden
Australia
Netherlands
Canada
Germany
Japan
Austria
Finland
Denmark
Luxembourg
Iceland
Ireland
Hong Kong, China
Mauritius
United States
Chile
Korea,
Rep.
Taiwan,
China
Italy
Portugal
France
Spain
Israel
Malaysia
Belgium
Jordan
Hungary
Costa Rica
Poland
Czech Republic
Greece
Thailand
Argentina
India
Slovak Republic
Egypt, Arab Rep.
Turkey
China
Philippines
Zimbabwe
Bulgaria
Brazil
South Africa
Bolivia
ROL
Mexico
El Salvador
Ecuador
Vietnam
Peru
Venezuela, RB
Russian Federation
Ukraine
Colombia
Indonesia
OC
Source: World Bank and World Economic Forum 2000.
The Link Between Organized Crime
and Corruption in Legal System
United
New
Norway
Zealand
Kingdom
Australia
Iceland
Denmark
Netherlands
Canada
Germany
Sweden
Singapore
Hong Kong, China Switzerland Austria
Israel
United States
Belgium
France
Spain
Ireland
Japan
South Africa
Portugal Jordan
Mauritius
Zimbabwe
Hungary
Italy
Egypt, Arab Rep.
Costa Rica
Turkey
Taiwan, China
Poland
Brazil
Czech Republic
India
Malaysia
Chile
Greece
Thailand
Korea, Rep.
Colombia
Argentina
Slovak Republic
Russian Federation
Bulgaria
Vietnam
China
El Salvador
Mexico
Ukraine
Philippines
Venezuela, RB
Indonesia
CORR
Peru
Ecuador
Bolivia
OC
Source: World Economic Forum, 2000 (organized crime and corruption in legal system)
The Link Between Organized Crime and
Enforcement of the Banking and Securities
Regulations
United States
Canada
Germany
Italy
Japan
Belgium
Netherlands
Chile
France
United Kingdom
Spain
Costa Rica
Austria
Poland
Hong Kong, China
Brazil
South Africa
Argentina
Thailand
Bolivia
Greece
Mexico
Hungary
India
Peru
Turkey
Colombia
Venezuela, RB
Indonesia
ENF
Czech Republic
China
Russian Federation
Slovak Republic
OC
Source: (University of Vrginia Center for International Law and Economic Development--CILED Index) and World
The Link Between Organized Crime
and Regulatory Discretion
Switzerland
United
Norway
Kingdom
Germany
Canada
Netherlands
France
Sweden
Denmark
Chile
United States
Japan
Australia
Spain
Austria
Ireland
Portugal
Peru
Belgium
Mexico
Czech
Republic
Argentina
Brazil
Slovak Republic
Colombia
Italy
Poland
Costa Rica
Hungary
Greece
REGDIS
Venezuela, RB
Russian Federation
Ukraine
OC
Source: World Economic Forum 1998 (regulatory discretion) and World Economic Forum 2000 (organized crime)
Anti-Corruption on Internet
http://www.odccp.org/corruption_toolkit.html
Anti-Corruption Tool Kit
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