High-Level Drug Traffickers: Suppliers and Wholesalers
Types of Drugs
Size and Composition of Drug-Dealing Syndicates
Friendship, Kinship, Race, and Ethnicity
Drug Trafficking as a Business Enterprise
- High-level drug trafficking syndicates consist of the dealer and a handful of employees.
- In the study, aside from two typically larger groups (15-30) members, many of the accused stated that there crews consisted of 3-9 members.
- smaller groups have safety advantages since members were trusted and known associates. Making it easier to monitor.
- "Several traffickers resisted joining other crews to form a larger organization because they valued their independence and autonomy...preferred being their own boss" (p. 245).
- Drug trafficking hierarchical system
- The person who one purchases their drugs from is the 'supplier' or 'source'.
- High-level traffickers are:
- importers
- growers
- manufacturers
- wholesalers
- Importers: those who smuggle drugs from the source country into Canada.
- Growers: those who produce the crops.
- Manufacturers: who produce designer drugs in laboratories.
- Wholesalers: are the distributors that sell their product to lower-level distributors...who in turn sell to other distributors or to users.
- Drug-dealing crews are formed typically through family ties, friendships, and/or past criminal involvement.
- In addition, race and ethnicity come into effect as friendship and kinship networks are usually culturally based.
- the ethnic factor gives a sense of security because they are seen as more trustworthy, whereas others are outsiders.
- More often then not, the associates of a crew are based on the source country.
- According the traffickers studied, drug dealing is a business like any requires:
- knowledge,
- business sense,
- and connections.
- In addition to a reputation of reliability, traffickers need quality products at competitive prices in order to be successful.
- 30 of 50 subjects (60%) had small businesses before getting into the drug trade business.
- 38 of 50 high-level drug dealers reported they were non-users.
- 5 of 50 smoked marijuana recreationally
- only 7 of 50 men admitted to heavily using drugs
- 3/7 were non-users initially
Drug Trafficking as Independent Entrepreneurship
Criminal and Non-Criminal Drug Networks: Violence among High-Level Traffickers
- work in small groups
- one or two persons will run the operation and they employ two or three others to work on commission or a fee-for-service basis.
- these employees are delegated to high-risk tasks such as:
- border crossing
- moving drugs from storage to distributor clients
- it is common for a dealer to approach supplier for better quality or prices for products
Conclusion
Criminal: (15 of 50)
- never or rarely work legitimate employment
- deviant lifestyle
- have extensive criminal records for variety of offenses starting at a young age, admit to using drugs, sold drugs at retail level.
- use force and threats to collect money
Non-Criminal: (35 of 50)
- law-abiding men with minimal criminal activity,
- extensive employment histories,
- work at a wholesale level and avoid using force,
- have families and live in upscale neighborhoods, and present themselves as successful businessmen.
Drug Trafficking and Organized Crime
Modus Operandi and Security
- The study focuses on 50 inmates representing 42 drug syndicates, however no data to show that in Canada the drug market is dominated by drug cartels.
Modus Operandi: A method of operating or functioning.
- function to protect dealers against robbery, diminish losses, and insulate them from arrest and conviction.
- dealers work in a need to know basis
- "If I didn't trust you, I didn't do business with you" (p. 246).
Organized Drug Syndicates and Territoriality
- Beare's definition of organized crime: it is an ongoing criminal conspiracy, with a structure greater than any single member, and the potential for corruption and/or violence to facilitate the criminal process
- This paper focuses on criminal organizations and networks engaged in high-level drug dealing in Canada.
- this present study indicates that drug traffickers in Canada "operate with other syndicates to maximize profits and minimize risks" (p. 251)
- operate in a city or geographic area but without trying to control the territory.
- Mostly go about without the use of force unless threatened. Majority of threat is from bikers who own or control various bars and strip clubs.
Sample and Research Methodology
Organized Crime and the Corruption of Public Officials
Google Images: Cocaine in Canada
- Although in the study there's very little evidence of corrupt officials, however subjects reported institutions and citizens accepting money.
- Very rarely would an officer be bribed to assist illicit drug activity or would try to bribe because they try to maintain a low profile.
- Desroches conducted a study with 50 high-level drug traffickers: importers, manufacturers, and wholesalers of large quantities of illicit drugs.
- 36 of 50 began trafficking at wholesale level.
- 14 of 50 retailed drugs before moving up.
- 15 of 50 were primarily wholesale, but sold drugs to users.
- 6 of 50 were former retailers that retained some of their better customers.
Drug Trafficking and Organized Crime in Canada: A Study of High-Level Drug Networks
Presented By: Karanvir Bhangu