Abstract
This article concentrates on Finnish professional criminals and their organisations in Finland and in cross-border crime operations. It is based on qualitative empirical material. It focus on 14 different Finnish groups active in the 1990s in smuggling (alcohol, tobacco and drugs), and/or procuring prostitutes, and/or handling stolen goods. The objective of the study was twofold: 1) to gather collective information about the world of the Finnish professional criminals by studying the personal characteristics of the group members, the crimes they commit, and the structures of the criminal groups, 2) to compare differences and similarities of professional criminals and organised crime groups in Finland and abroad. The study clearly shows, that Finnish professional criminal groups are loosely structured networks that based on trade relations between the participants. The operational time of the groups is short and laundering of profits is not planned beforehand. The comparison of studied groups and internationally well known organised crime groups shows, that the Finns are a long way behind in all matters related on organised crime and its criminality. Finnish groups are loosely structured networks working on ad hog basis, at the moment and a certain time. International groups are monopolistic business enterprises that corrupt and threats state authorities and surrounding society to leave them in peace, promote its own business matters and reputation of top men.
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Notes
A professional criminal is an individual who earns his living by committing crimes. Committing crimes requires professional skill(s) and competence that distinguish the person from the beginners. A professional criminal earns his living by committing crimes, has a professional attitude, and behaves accordingly (Vold 1958). In his study of the prison population, Kääriäinen used the term “professional criminal” to refer to persons who seemed to be oriented towards commiting crimes as a way of life. Professional criminals are that part of the prison population who seem to be orientated towards committing crimes as a way of life. Crime is an essential part of their way of life and a means of livelihood. The crimes are planned, carried out reasonably well, and the profits are relatively large (Kääriäinen 1994, 60).
Organised criminal groups are groups that commit various types of offences, exhibit a hierarchical structure, have an internal sanction system, and continue to operate even without one or more of their key members. The aim of these groups is not only monetary gain but economic power as well. Ultimately they seek to occupy a monopoly position in a certain market in order to compete with rivalling groups or make tacit agreements with them. The instruments they use include intimidation and violence, inside as well as outside the group, and corruption. In addition, efforts are made to infiltrate into legitimate sectors of the economy with the purpose of covering up illegal activities, acquiring influence over politicians and exerting control over their decision-making. Lastly, a criminal group engaged in organised crime is always active on a long-term basis (Fijnaut et al. 1998, 11).
The figure for 2004 was 34 (NBI 2005).
Aim of the study was to challenge Finnish police compulsion to define all kind of group criminality and criminal groups as organised crime that took place in Finland. The whole issue of defining and reporting national levels of organised crime in European Union countries was developed in the beginning 1990s. As new member of EU, Finland joined in the EU on 1995, the Finnish police found that many organised crime groups from Finland. In the media police claimed, that those Finnish and foreign organised crime groups will take over the whole country. No academic studies have found that risk before or after that massive media campaign (gf. Aromaa 1983, Kinnunen 1996, Junninen 2006). In the academic research police willingness to claim all serious criminality as organised crime has seen as clever trick to get more funding and research rights to police force. Before that Finland had been seen as peaceful country with low level of serious criminality. Similar kind of overestimation from the police side can be found from the Holland in the early 1990’s (gf. e.g Fijnaut 1991).
The 1990’s was chosen on two main reasons: 1) the rapid change of neighbouring countries created new opportunities to commit cross-border crimes between Finland and Estonia or Russia, 2) Finnish media was reporting very often Finnish police statements of fastly crowing risks of foreign organised crime in Finland.
Cross-border crime is not a new phenomenon; it has existed as long as borders have defined nations and criminals have used neighbouring countries to buy and sell illegal goods or hide crime profits. Border area and the countries different legislation, culture and economical system have given a great possibility to gain and hide criminal profits. On the same time neighbouring countries living conditions (criminals, laws, authorities) are better know than the countries further, there is only one border to cross and more countrymen living in the country. In the Finnish scheme Estonia became attractive on the 1990’s when country gain its independence from Soviet Union, and the whole society was under massive changes and political, societal and criminal chaos. The dilemma of police difficulties to investigate cross-border crime and co-operate with the neighbouring country authorities is well know also in Finland (cf. e.g. Joutsen 1997a, b; Ulrich & Kivimäki 1998; Junninen and Aromaa 1999).
In Sweden, the committee members represented criminal police, local police, tax authorities and criminologists. Their task was to consider and analyse the degree of organisation of Swedish criminals, and to assess the congruence between them and the criteria presented in social science and legal literature on organised crime (Rikspolisstyrelsen 1977). In the Netherlands, criminologists used police data sources to study how well Dutch professional criminal groups correspond to organised crime definitions (Bruinsma et al. 1999). Markina’s study tries to define the formation of the Estonian organised crime after the country’s independence in 1991 (Markina 1998).
Status means that professional criminals, as other professionals, seek to attain a certain standing and reputation among their peers. Status is based on technical skills, financial situation, social contacts, influence and habits that crystallise as professional pride. (Aromaa 1983, 54.).
A habitual offender is an offender who does not succeed in the criminal’s profession, nor is able to otherwise meet the living standards of the professionals. He gets caught time after time, but still wants to work and live like a criminal even if other criminals cannot trust him with any demanding tasks. Between prison sentences he is thus compelled to work in a legal occupation. Because the only merit of the habitual offender is that he has been caught several times, he has no actual status among the professional criminals (Vold 1958; Vold et al. 1998.).
The persons interviewed for this study had a relatively clear opinion concerning the central characteristics of a professional criminal. A summary of their own definition of a professional criminal is the following:
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1)
Several crime areas. Professional criminals operate in many crime areas. A single professional criminal may be specialised in a single crime sector and knows everything about it;
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2)
Money orientation. The person’s only motive is money and his main source of income is crime; he is not committing crimes for excitement or fun;
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3)
Goal orientation. When an offender commits crimes, his only concern is committing them as well as possible, regardless of the consequences to others. Crimes can cause fear, terror or distress but this is of no relevance;
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4)
Committing crimes is serious work. The profession of a professional criminal is comparable to the profession of a company manager in that it involves a lot of pressure (to make money and not get caught), work is always priority number one, at any cost (family, friends, leisure time etc.);
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5)
Professionalism. The person plans his actions and co-operates with others to achieve goals. He does not want to act unprofessionally;
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6)
Only profitable crimes are committed. A single crime series can be worth millions;
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7)
Dignity, good behaviour, credible appearance and self-confidence. Professional criminal behaves in away that makes fellow criminals respect his skills and income, and normal people his luxurious lifestyle;
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8)
A free man. In general, professional criminal spends more time outside than inside prison. In the best case, police are not even after him because he is unknown;
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9)
Legalising the profits. Professional criminal knows how to launder the proceeds of crime so that a) authorities do not even become interested in him—they do not realise that he has earned his money by committing crime(s); b) if the authorities become interested in his source of income, money is invested in a way that they cannot confiscate or even find it;
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10)
Normal family. Family life of a professional criminal is “normal”, at the very least serving as a façade of happiness and normality. Wife’s income serves to explain the standard of living;
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11)
Established. Professional criminal has to be known in the criminal fraternity as a person who has all (or at least most of) the attributes mentioned above.
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1)
According to various United Nations working papers and the Palermo convention, transnational organised crime has the following characteristics:
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1)
A stuctured group to commit rationally planned serious crimes, three or more persons, existing for aperiod of time and acting in concert with the aim of committing one or more serious crimes or offences established in accordance with the Convention.
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2)
Hierarchical links or personal relations which enable leaders to control the group, earn profits and/or to control internal or foreign territories or markets, using violence, intimidation or corruption.
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3)
The laundering of illicit proceeds to further criminal activity and to infiltrate the legitimate economy.
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4)
A profit motivation, the group is structured to obtain financial of other benefits to its members
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5)
A potential for expansion into any new activity beyond national borders. (The United Nations Convention of 12 December 2000; United Nations Centre for International Crime Prevention 2000; Vlassis 2001.)
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1)
The European Union definition of organised crime is the following:
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1)
Collaboration of two or more people.
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2)
Each with their own appointed tasks.
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3)
For a prolonged or indefinite period of time.
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4)
Using some form of discipline and control.
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5)
Suspected of the commission of serious criminal offences.
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6)
Operating on an international level.
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7)
Using violence or other means suitable for intimidation.
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8)
Using commercial or business-like structures.
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9)
Engaged in money laundering.
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10)
Exerting influence on politics, the media, public administration, judicial authorities, or the economy.
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11)
Determined by the pursuit of profit and/or power.
In order to be classified as an organised crime group, at least six of the above-mentioned characteristics must be present, four of them being numbers 1, 3, 5 and 11 (European Union, 1997 & 1999).
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1)
cf. e.g Gurov, Alexander and Rusakova, Maya in Russia, Plawaczewski, Emil in Poland or Stankov, Bojan in Bulgaria.
“Knowing the enemy” in this context mean that authorities of the European countries have find, produce and share the facts of the organised crime groups in their country and also in the wider in the European level among the neighbouring and other countries.
The number of required interviews was concluded from several sources estimating the number of professional criminals in Finland. The different estimates available indicated that the number of active professionals in Finland was approximately 100. Various arguments supported this figure: 1) in the 1990s, the number of convicted prisoners in Finland was slightly below 3,000 persons per year (Aho 2002), and if only one per cent (as motorcycle gangs claim) or under 5 per cent (as my informants estimated) of them were actual professional criminals, their total number would be 30–150 persons. The Finnish police estimated that in the 1990s, there were about 20 active organised crime groups in Finland, the number of participants varying from 3 to over ten. This would equal to 60–200 professional criminals. (NBI 2001).
The fieldwork was conducted in three and a half months in the summer and autumn 2001. Some of the interviewees were active in more than one of the discussed subject areas. All interviewees were male. Ten of them were serving prison sentences in Finland. Eleven were free and living mainly in Finland, staying part of the year abroad, in for example Estonia and Spain. Only two of the contacted persons refused on interview. Finding the interviewee was not difficult. Persons who were in prison had always time to speak. Some of the interviews had to rearrange several times due the business matters of the persons at liberty. The interviews were done in the public coffee places or restaurants, and in the prison cells and visiting areas. Two of the profiled persons in my reserve (on a shortlist of 50) were killed in the course of the three and a half months of fieldwork.
List of the variables is collection of different definitions of organised crime; the main sources were United Nations, European Union and criminological literature. First four variables describe the crime areas of the groups. All the groups presented in here had to be active at least one of the studied crime areas. The ten other variables is collection of the theoretical literature of organised crime studies. Bonding means that group is open only to chosen persons. Persons who are willing to participate group has to prove their quality to commit crimes, before they can recruited, if their services are needed. Basic rule is that group does not take new persons, if the work can be done without them. Continuity means that group have done more than one project together, and the future coming crime activities have been planned. Co-operation means that group have commit smuggling or some other crimes together with other Finnish or foreign group. Corruption/ violence means that group has one or another means to commit crime or hide crime profits. Division of labour, means that group members have their individual tasks in the group crime activities. Expanding nature means that group has tried to expand its activities to other crime areas or other parts of Finland or abroad. Money laundering means that group or its members have laundered money by investing it or used other means to make crime profits in legal income. Monopoly means that group has tried to reach monopoly of certain crime area in the certain part of Finland. Multiple enterprises means that group members are active in several crime areas. Non-ideological means that group and its members are only interested to make money on the crimes that they commit. No political or any other ideological ideas are not involved to the group crime activities. Profit and power means that group and its members are interested to make money on the crimes that they commit. Economical wealthy give power and independence. Rules and regulations means that group and its members have some rules to follow; no scape-coding, etc. Specialisation means that group and its members have know-how how and individual roles when they do big-scale smuggling and distribution of the goods in the country. Structure of the group means that more than three persons is involved into the group actions.
In this study semi-organised crime means that the group’s organisation and the crimes it has committed partly fulfil and partly do not fulfil the definitions of criminology, EU and UN (presented in the footnotes before) for organised crime. It may be that the group cannot or even does not want to fulfil them completely, and thus, its crimes and group structure have qualities of both organised crime and group criminality.
Group criminality means that a group of criminals who are professionally engaged commit certain punishable offences in a certain period of time. The group has an internal division of labour although it is not necessarily hierarchically structured. It has no internal sanctioning system, and its continued existence depends on one or more key members. Its aim is monetary gain and it can achieve this without having to compete with other groups, let alone pursue economic dominance. In addition, the group has following features: in principle, it only commits one type of offence, the revenues are solely used to finance luxurious life style and new similar offences, and it makes every effort to commit its crimes as professionally as possible (Fijnaut et al. 1998, 11). Structured group is a group that is not randomly formed for the immediate commission of an offence and that does not need to have formally defined roles for its members, continuity of the membership or a developed structure (United Nations 2001).
International organised crime: activities of one-country organised crime groups are involved in relations/partnership with organised crime group/s of other countries. Usually this term is used to describe partnership co-operations between different groups from different countries. (Ryan 1995.)
Undisturbed in here means, that Finnish authorities have not faced a much of irregular influence from the criminals side, even the large groups had been investigated by the police and harsh sentencies given by the courts. In the interviews offenders told, that they like to keep low profile. Irregular influence against authorities is not favourable, because it causes more problems and unwanted attention. Irregular influence of Finnish authorities by the professional criminals was relative small in the last part of 1990s, when this matter first time studied in the country. gf. fc Aromaa, unpublished manuscript.
In Finland was the prohibition of the alcohol during the years 1919–1932. It had similar kind of effects than the prohibition in the United States of America. People did not stop to drink alcohol. On the contrary, alcohol was largely smuggled into country from the neighbouring countries, in the Finnish case it mostly became from the Estonia. That large scale smuggling of alchol showed large profits to smuglers and resallers. Part of the profits were invested in legal business, that was the beginning of the some wealthies families in Finland, like in the United States (cf. e.g. Niska 1931, Lombardo 1994).
The Finnish parlament consists on 200 members that are chosen in elections at every fourth year.
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Junninen, M. Finnish professional criminals and their organisations in the 1990SA. Crime Law Soc Change 51, 487–509 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-008-9159-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-008-9159-8