Europe home to 3,600 criminal gangs
(03-19 19:15)
The European Union's law enforcement agency Europol says 3,600 organized crime gangs are operating throughout the continent and a new breed of criminal is cashing in on the ongoing economic crisis and the increasingly interconnected world.
Europol says in its annual report on organized crime that criminals are broadening counterfeiting operations to include not just cheap knock-offs of high end luxury items but also “daily consumer good including foods and medical products.’’
And while still engaging in more traditional forms of crime like drug production and smuggling, crime syndicates also are increasingly engaging in cybercrime like identity theft, AP reports.
The new forms of organized crime “generate illicit profits at low risk,'' Europol's director Rob Wainwright says in his foreword to the report.
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