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Organized crime

Organized crime refers to transnational or national enterprises run by criminals engaging in illegal activity for profit. Examples are the mafia, triads or yakuza.

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All Content on this topic

Police at the courthouse in Amsterdam during the Marengo Trial, 12 April 2021

Dutch 'Mocro mafia' sets off alarm bells in Germany

German police have warned of Dutch organized crime networks moving into Germany, carrying out kidnappings and torture.
PoliticsSeptember 25, 2024
Silhouette of a man in a darkened room working with what appears to be code on a laptop computer. Symbolic image taken in 2022.

Global police sting topples 'Ghost' criminal messaging app

A total of 51 suspects were arrested, 38 in Australia, where the app's creator resides.
CrimeSeptember 18, 2024
An unidentified man in South Africa shows a scar resulting from an illegal kidney operation

Illegal organ traffickers in Africa prey on world's poor

Illegal organ trafficking is worth over $1 billion annually and generally targets vulnerable people.
HealthSeptember 18, 2024
DW AfricaLink

Illegal organ traffickers in Africa prey on world's poor

The illegal organ trade in Africa is a significant issue, with the World Health Organization estimating its value at over $1 billion annually. Efforts to raise awareness through campaigns, national policies and legal frameworks are crucial in addressing the shortage of legal organ donors and combating the illegal organ trade. But is that enough?
HealthSeptember 18, 202426:11 min
Dokumentation | Yvan Sagnet, Kämpfer für die Rechte von Erntehelfern

Campaigning for migrant workers' rights in Italy

Yvan Sagnet has been campaigning against the exploitation of migrant workers in Italy for years.
MigrationSeptember 17, 202428:34 min
An arrest by a highway patrol

Drugs, human trafficking top organized crime in Germany

Organized crime in Germany involves drug offenses, racketeering and property crimes — as well as human smuggling.
CrimeSeptember 5, 2024
An investigator holds up an axe, sealed in a plastic evidence bag, with "King Zulu" written on the shaft in yellow paint

Nigeria's Black Axe, an organized crime group on the rise

What's behind the Western African mafia group which once started as a student group struggling against colonial rule?
CrimeSeptember 1, 2024
A person with a dog with a building in the background and lots of snow

People leaving Sweden will exceed immigrants in 2024

Emigrants will outnumber immigrants this year — thanks in part to the government's restrictive migration policies.
MigrationAugust 18, 2024
Water tankers being filled in Karachi, Pakistan

Pakistan: A look at Karachi's 'tanker mafias'

Millions of people in Pakistan's most populous city have to buy water supplied through commercial tankers every day.
SocietyAugust 2, 202403:13 min
Berlin police arrest a man

Clan crime in Germany: How dangerous is it really?

The problematic word "clan" triggers fears in many Germans. Yet statistically speaking, the phenomenon is marginal.
CrimeJune 26, 2024
Honduran police officers

Honduras to build an emergency 'mega-prison'

Honduran authorities are rolling out measures aiming to reduce rampant organized crime in the Central American country.
Law and JusticeJune 15, 2024
DW Dokumentationen | Gangsterjagd - Polizei im Kampf gegen die Mafia

Gangster hunt - Police battle the mafia

Germany is a place where the mafia feels at home. But the police have become more vigilant.
CrimeJune 2, 202426:03 min
Carabinieri car in Italy

Italy: Police arrest over 100 mafia members in mass raid

Italian authorities are increasing efforts to fight one of the most powerful crime organizations in the world.
CrimeMay 14, 2024
Deutschland München 2024 | Sichergestellte Asservate | Razzia gegen nigerianische "Black Axe"-Mafia

Are African mafia ruining the name of migrants in Europe?

Who are the Black Axes and how wide is the web of African organized crime in Europe?
CrimeMay 8, 202430:00 min
Spaghetti ice cream, one of Germany's most beloved desserts

Germany: Ice cream sellers probed over Mafia money

Three men are accused of using an ice cream parlor in a sleepy German town to wash cash for Italy's 'Ndrangheta.
CrimeMay 8, 2024
Four individuals, among them Baden-Württemberg's Minister for Justice and Migration Marion Gentges (l) and Interior Minister Thomas Strobl (second from l), at a May 2, 2024, press conference announcing a successful police operation against a network of fraud call centers

German police bust Europe's 'largest' scam call center

Investigators teamed up with colleagues from the Balkans and Lebanon in raids set up by months of intense surveillance.
CrimeMay 2, 2024
DW Podcast | Inside Europe | provisorisch f ROAD

Inside Europe 25 April 2024

Fifty years after Portugal's Carnation Revolution, we journey through the mutinous streets of Lisbon, plus the EU's Green Deal is in trouble. Can it be saved? We also focus on the topic of land — Danish land that’s been deliberately flooded, Bulgarian land deliberately left un-tilled and Italian land bought up by the mafia. And: why Slovakia's brown bears have become a big wedge issue.
PoliticsApril 25, 202454:59 min
Black Axe paraphernalia seized by police in Bavaria, as pictured on April 24, 2024

Germany arrests suspected members of Nigerian dating mafia

The gang members extorted money from their victims after gaining their trust and promising marriage.
CrimeApril 24, 2024
A composite image shows a world map, cocaine and a police officer with a dog

How Europe became addicted to cocaine

Europe's craving for cocaine has made gangs extremely wealthy. But the reality of the drug trade can be devastating.
PoliticsApril 8, 202414:36 min
Several modern hundred us dollar bills, curved upward

German police seize $100 million in US-bound fake bills

Investigators in Germany have confiscated counterfeit US dollar bills that were being shipped on a mass scale.
CrimeApril 5, 2024
DW Dokumentationen | Das brutale Geschäft der Holzmafia

The Timber Mafia’s brutal business

The illegal timber trade is worth billions. High returns and low rates of prosecution attract organized crime.
BusinessMarch 6, 202442:35 min
A vehicle carrying suspects arrives at the high security court in Amsterdam, Netherlands

Dutch crime boss goes down, but cocaine trade here to stay

The conviction of kingpin Ridouan Taghi ends a violent chapter in Dutch history, but organized crime still looms large.
CrimeFebruary 27, 2024
Niederlande | Marengo Prozess

Dutch mega trial ends in life sentence for gang leader

Kingpin Ridouan Taghi received a life sentence over a series of murders committed by his gang that shocked the country,
CrimeFebruary 27, 202401:25 min
Dutch policeman standing outside a high security court

Dutch court convicts mafia kingpin for series of murders

A court in the Netherlands sentenced a mafia boss to life in prison for a series of murders.
CrimeFebruary 27, 2024
An aerial image shows KK Park on the Moei River

How Chinese mafia are running a scam factory in Myanmar

In KK Park, those who refuse to scam face torture, starvation and even murder. DW investigates the brutal compound.
Human RightsJanuary 30, 2024
An illustration showing many identical people sitting at rows of computers, being supervised by two men in a featureless room

Scam Factory: Behind Asia's Cyber Slavery

They scam unsuspecting victims all across the world — but they are victims themselves.
CrimeJanuary 29, 202428:35 min
Al Capone at a football game in 1931

Why Al Capone is still the most famous mobster ever

January 17 marks 125 years since the birth of Al Capone — one of the most notorious gangsters of all time.
FilmJanuary 17, 2024
People light candles at a memorial in Sweden

Sweden steps up the fight against organized crime

Sweden is taking a tougher stance against the escalating violence of organized crime.
SocietyJanuary 12, 202410:41 min
Former Albanian PM Sali Berisha holds up his right hand as he speaks outside. A camera can be seen in the background. Tirana, Albania, December 14, 2023

Albania: Fight against high-level corruption gains traction

Does the house arrest of former Prime Minister Sali Berisha mark the end of impunity for high-level corruption?
PoliticsJanuary 4, 2024
Silhouette of the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque during sunset in Istanbul

Turkey seeks to crack down on organized crime

Turkey has become a haven for international criminal gangs, according to experts. But for how much longer?
PoliticsDecember 22, 2023
DW Podcast | Inside Europe | provisorisch f ROAD

Inside Europe - 23 November 2023

Shock result in the Netherlands, Finland closes border crossings with Russia, and choppy waters ahead for Spain’s Pedro Sanchez. Also: Erdogan’s double game on the Middle East, Italy's mafia mega-trial, the EU's AI Act, and a night out at the circus.
PoliticsNovember 23, 202355:01 min
The court reads the sentences of the hundreds convicted in Italy's "maxi-trial"

Italy mafia trial: 'Ndrangheta bosses get lengthy jail terms

A nearly three-year trial has ended in the conviction and sentencing of around 200 mobsters and white-collar helpers
CrimeNovember 20, 2023
DW's Eco India

Sand: A priceless resource?

The construction industry is booming and sand is being extracted faster than it can be replenished. In this episode of Eco India: Alternatives to sand, plantations against illegal sandmining, and how to stop coastal sand erosion.
Nature and EnvironmentNovember 9, 202326:06 min
Matteo Messina Denaro being escorted by police

Matteo Messina Denaro: Captured Mafia boss dies

He was the last known boss of the Sicilian Cosa Nostra mob that was depicted in the Godfather movies.
CrimeSeptember 25, 2023
Police holding Matteo Messina Denaro

Italy mafia boss Messina Denaro in coma — reports

The Cosa Nostra chief, who was caught by police in January after three decades on the run, is reportedly in a coma.
CrimeSeptember 23, 2023
People standing on the rooftop of prison facilities.

Ecuador: Prisoners release 57 guards held hostage

The narcotics-related mayhem began when several guards and officials were taken hostage after an attempt to raid prisons
CrimeSeptember 2, 2023
A still from "The Irishman" shows Robert De Niro (right) in a scene with Al Pacino. Both are dressed in 1970s-style costumes and sitting in armchairs.

Robert De Niro's 80th birthday: His 11 best films

DW revisits some of Robert De Niro's best films, including "Mean Streets," "Raging Bull," "Casino" and "The Irishman."
FilmAugust 17, 202311 images
Alexey Petrov

Bulgaria: Controversial businessman shot dead in Sofia

Alexey Petrov was former secret agent and government adviser on the fight against organized crime.
CrimeAugust 17, 2023
Euro notes and guns confiscated by police

Germany: Interior minister gets tough on organized crime

Interior Minister Nancy Faeser would see members of organized criminal groups collectively deported.
PoliticsAugust 8, 2023
Fans of Serie A champions Scudetto Napoli wave flags and cheer

Fugitive Italian mobster blows cover celebrating Napoli win

Vincenzo La Porta was on the run for 11 years, but was arrested thanks to his devotion to his hometown soccer team.
CrimeAugust 5, 2023
Stock photo of an Italian Carabinieri van in front of an old building

Italy: 82 suspected mafiosi arrested in Foggia raid

Those arrested are accused of drug trafficking, illegal weapons possession and systematic extortion.
CrimeJuly 24, 2023
A soldier patrols the government palace area in Guinea-Bissau

Guinea Bissau: Mafia, drugs and a former president's son

The son of a former Bissau-Guinean president is suspected of links to drug trafficking and to last year's coup attempt.
PoliticsJuly 11, 2023
A row of men with full-bodied tattoos

Japan: Tattoo artists want to wash off criminal connection

Body art remains taboo in Japan, and people with tattoos are often banned from public bathhouses and military service.
CultureJuly 10, 2023
Magazin Global Us | Indien Holzmafia

Courageous group of women battles the timber mafia

A group of women in India called the Tarzan Army successfully fights for forest preservation.
Nature and EnvironmentJuly 6, 202307:21 min
DW Podcast | Inside Europe | provisorisch f ROAD

Inside Europe - 29 June 2023

After the failed Russia revolt, what's next for Prigozhin? Why aren't Ukrainian POWs being handed over to Kyiv? Norway to mine the minerals needed to power electric cars. Also: Turkey labels the Istanbul Pride march a terror threat, residents cry foul over a polluting Dutch steel plant, mafia-run Italian farms are a bad deal for migrant workers and helping UK students to recite poetry by heart.
PoliticsJune 29, 202354:59 min
Protesters walk with posters of the 43 students.

Mexico: Police arrest 8 soldiers over student kidnappings

In 2014, 43 students went missing in southern Mexico. So far, the remains of only three victims have been found.
CrimeJune 27, 2023
Needle, baggie containing white powder and some more white powder on a black surface

Drug sales and violence up in EU, report finds

According to the European Union's narcotics monitor, the greater diversity of illicit drugs is increasing health risks.
PoliticsJune 16, 2023
Two Australian police officials take a man into custody

Authorities find drugs worth millions hidden in maple syrup

Authorities who cracked the transnational drug syndicate hailed the collaborative efforts of different nations.
CrimeJune 15, 2023
Police officials at the scene of crime after the shooting.

Sweden: Teenager killed, three injured in shooting

While two suspects were arrested after a car chase, the motive of the shooting is yet to be established.
ConflictsJune 11, 2023
Forensic experts work with several bags of human remains extracted from the bottom of a ravine

Mexico: Remains of missing call center workers identified

The remains of several missing young call center workers have been identified in Mexico, officials said.
CrimeJune 7, 2023