Crime Analysis and Investigation - Case Study Example

Crime analysis and investigation Crime analysis and investigation Owing a loan shark $ 4,000 and failing to meet the deadlines set in the agreement can be a challenging experience. A loan shark is an individual or a group of persons that give out unsecured loans at high interest rates that are usually illegal (Albanese, 2010). Failure to meet repayment agreements results to the loan shark utilizing unconventional means to recover the money. Some of the strategies they utilize include threatening, intimidation, destruction of property, assault, and public embarrassment. The individual in this case is faced with a challenging experience because he does not have assets that he can sell in order to repay the loan. Another problem is that he does not have a reliable family member or a financial institution, which can advance him with a loan to repay the debt. Another limitation is that he is well placed in the community hence he cannot engage in acts of running a criminal syndicate (Briggs & Friedman, 2009). The main clients that loan sharks usually serve, are those that are unable to acquire loans from financial institutions because of their risky financial situation. Other potential clients for loan sharks are illegal gamblers, thieves, and small businessmen who are in critical financial situations and cannot access legal loans (Albanese, 2010). The fact that the individual resorted to the loan sharks in the first place means that he falls into one of the above groups of clients. Raising $ 4,000 in a span of 48 hours with limited options of securing it can be a challenging task. The loan shark usually resorts to violent means in order to recover their money; therefore, the individual in question must resort to a criminal activity in order to raise the required money. One of the most efficient and well paying criminal activities to conduct in order to raise the amount is by planning a kidnapping then demanding a ransom. The potential victim to be kidnapped should be a high profile individual whom the concerned parties are not willing to risk, but to pay the ransom. Examples of individuals who can be kidnapped include those from rich backgrounds, prominent business persons and political leaders. Since this operation targets to acquire a small amount of money, the target should not be a high profile individual who will arouse immediate and keen interest from authorities. This narrows the target to illegal immigrants who are well of and will be afraid to seek the help of the police because the fear being discovered. For the process to be successful, the individual must secure the help of criminal gangs who carry out random kidnappings. These gangs are not professionals, and in most cases, they will hold their victim for a limited period before the ransom is collected (Concannon et al, 2008). The individual must enter into an agreement with this gang on how to share the ransom in order to avoid double crossing. Other requirements that the operation will require include information about the target. Since the operation is limited by the time, the concerned individual must furnish the gang with a dossier containing the behavioral patterns of the target, which include his or her probable location at the intended time of the kidnapping. Other information about the target includes their financial worth and habits like consumption of alcohol. Other requirements include personnel, who in most cases are provided by the gang. The cars for this purpose and the safe house for holding the victim until the payment of the ransom are needed. Because this operation is a small and short one, the victim can be held in the boot of car until the conclusion of the operation. The gang will also provide other equipment like masks to hide identity and guns that boost security in the case of any unforeseen eventuality. The circumstances that can make the target more vulnerable to the kidnapping include carrying out the operation in secluded locations like dark alleys and sidewalks. Other predisposing circumstances include a target who consumes alcohol and those who are not willing to seek assistance from the corridors of justice. The process that the kidnapping will follow is similar to those utilized by terrorists and involves six phases: choosing the target, planning, operation, attack, get away, and exploitation (Concannon et al, 2008). The interested individual will carry out the selection of the target. In other circumstances, the individual can approach the gang with his proposal, and the gang can give him a variety of targets since they are well informed about the vice. The planning stage will involve the individual and the gang. At this point, both parties determine the time to carry out the operation, make an inventory of the tools and equipment required and secure the cooperation of all gang members (Jackson et al, 2005). Deployment is the assembling of the resources at the required destination at the right moment. This will mean that there will be members who will be surveying the victim and communicating information to the other members of the group. The attack phase will be carried out by members of the group in a location that does not raise any alarms and limits suspicion from the public. The gang grabs the target and hurls into a waiting car, and the party speeds away to an agreed designated location. Escape will involve the use of at least four vehicles. One of the vehicles will be the one that was carrying out surveillance, the second one will contain the hostage and the third will have back up in case of an emergency while the fourth will monitor the ransom collection area. The remaining part is exploitation and is the most notable one. After reaching a secure location, the victim is blindfolded and transferred into the trunk of a vehicle. Calls are the made to the immediate family members, claiming possession of the individual and demanding a specific amount of ransom for his release. Warnings are also issued to the members not to contact the police and to meet the monetary demands before a certain period or else the victim will be harmed (Briggs & Friedman, 2009). The collection of the ransom will take place in a predetermined place, where a surveillance group will stake out for the presence of the police. Finally, the ransom is shared according to the predetermined agreements. References Albanese, S (2010). Organized Crime in Our Times. New York: Elsevier. Briggs, S & Friedman, J (2009). Criminology for Dummies. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Concannon, D et al (2008). Kidnapping: an investigators guide to profiling. New York: Academic Press. Jackson, B et al (2005). Aptitude for Destruction: Case studies of organizational learning in five terrorist groups. London: Rand Corporation. Read More