Exposé on Organized Crime in Money Laundering: Current Situation, Trends and Counteractive Practices – the Latvian Case

 

ISDP FORUM ON TRANSNATIONAL CRIME with

Andrejs Vilks, Director of the Law Institute, Riga Stradins University, Latvia

Sergey Vishkovskis, Riga Stradins University, Latvia

Tuesday, October 26, 2010, 10:00-12:00

In light of the current global economic crisis, criminal and shadow economic activities have broadened their share of the global market. Organized crime structures are the only coordinated elements in a disorganized society. Crisis unveils and aggravates modified criminal tendencies (variations of cybercrime, fraud, including insurance fraud, corruption with tenders, false entrepreneurship, tax evasion, money laundering etc.) out of which transnational criminal networks develop. And contrary to this situation law enforcement resources are being slashed, as well, the possibilities for offensive preventive actions against criminal groups, pertaining to economic crime and money laundering, are experiencing a contraction. Thus “Black money” becomes one of the ways to liven up the economy and attract new financial resources. Under these particular circumstances portions of intricate criminal activities become invisible (non-fixed) or latent.  All in all, while one would assume reduced criminal activity in relation to a reduction in ‘normal’ economic transactions, at times of crisis this is nothing more than a presumption.

Andrejs Vilks is an associate professor and director of the Law Institute at Riga Stradins University and director of the Criminological Research Center of the Ministry of Justice of Latvia, and Chairman of the Committee on Security, Riga Municipal Council, Latvia. His research interests include criminology and sociology. Mr Vilks has done extensive research on organized crime in the Baltic Sea Region and has expertise relating to organized crime in Latvia.

Sergejs Viskovksis is a lawyer educated at the Latvian Police Academy. He is currently conducting research on money laundering in Latvia.

Location: ISDP, Västra Finnbodavägen 2, Stockholm-Nacka. For a map and directions, please go here.

To attend: RSVP to Ms. Martina Klimesova at mklimesova@isdp.eu