Most investigations of transnational criminal networks follow a known group or commodity such as the Italian Camorra, Chinese triads, or rhino or elephant poachers. By having a focus on key actors and commodities, much falls outside the attention of investigators. This fascinating analysis of a global Romanian crime group reveals a gaping hole in our transnational crime investigations. OCCRP exposes a major transnational crime group with 1,000 members and 50 core members operating for eight years without major disruption. The criminals netted about $240 million annually by inserting their own skimming machines into bank ATMs around the world and cloning credit and debit cards. This one gang, dubbed the Riviera Maya by OCCRP, accounted for about 10 percent of all the skimming operations in the world and operated in the European Union, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Brazil, Cuba, Paraguay, Turkey, the United States, and many other countries. Commentary: Lessons on How Not to Disrupt Crime
- Journal Article
Most investigations of transnational criminal networks follow a known group or commodity such as the Italian Camorra, Chinese triads, or rhino or elephant poachers. By having a focus on key actors and commodities, much falls outside the attention of investigators. This fascinating analysis of a global Romanian crime group reveals a gaping hole in our transnational crime investigations. OCCRP exposes a major transnational crime group with 1,000 members and 50 core members operating for eight years without major disruption. The criminals netted about $240 million annually by inserting their own skimming machines into bank ATMs around the world and cloning credit and debit cards. This one gang, dubbed the Riviera Maya by OCCRP, accounted for about 10 percent of all the skimming operations in the world and operated in the European Union, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Brazil, Cuba, Paraguay, Turkey, the United States, and many other countries.