CORRUPTION AND ORGANIZED CRIME

ABSTRACT.Seen as a social phenomenon, corruption is present in all societies without taking into account the level of development of each country, adapting to the specific conditions of each state, and it may jeopardize the very essence of the state by the consequences that determine. Given that human society, viewed as a whole, is in constant motion, operating modifications and structural and organizational changes in the states through freedom of markets, by allowing the movement of financial resources and continuous exchange of information between different sectors, the opportunities to gain power include also illegal ways.Keywords: corruption, organized crime, EU context1. Corruption and the process of globalizationAt present, it is discussed the globalization process of organized crime, and an important point is the presence of corruption phenomenon. Corruption implies a series of illegal activities, in search of an apparently legal facet.1Throughout its evolution, crime, only in the early stages, resorted to violence, then adapting to times, realities, it resorted to another means of persuasion, namely corruption.2According to the definition given by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), organized crime is on fear and corruption and is motivated by obtaining gains.3According to doctrinarians, even if corruption is not in direct relation to organized crime, however it can contribute to the expansion of organized crime.4Moreover, in the specialty literature it is started from the finding according to which the two offences should be considered complementary, as follows: corruption as a tool of organized crime and organized crime as a stage in the further development process of corruption.It conveys the idea, as demonstrated by the facts of reality that, corruption represents one of the indicators of the existence of organized crime at various levels of influence of the organization of a state and this is justified by the fact that the phenomenon is characterized, among other things, by the influence of these on the political, administrative structures and judicial power.5Organized crime, is much more complex, including as activity, the corruption specific to groups, criminal organizations; authorities corruption and the trend to control the repressive apparatus, by introducing in these structures its members in order to obtain information, support for deletion or falsification, destruction of evidence, neutralization of judges, prosecutors, police, witnesses, experts by violence and threat.6The existing connections between organized crime and corruption highlight a link between offences as a purpose and offences as a means. Thus, the structures of organized crime often use corruption as a means to ensure the protection of illegal activities.7The two phenomena have a number of similarities, but also differences, which can make them, exist also independently of each other.Regarding the similarities of the two phenomena, according to Mrs Elena Cherciu8 they are:- Common elements that are found in the essence of phenomena, in the sense that both are antisocial manifestations, which are based on the pursuit of illegal activities.Thus, we can remember the fact that the abuse of power is characteristic of both corruption and influential people who, by the activities they carry, they encourage illegal activities of the criminal organizations.9Offences specific to corruption and organized crime are always committed intentionally and have as a purpose to obtain financial benefits or services.10- The phenomena mentioned, bring disturbance both in the public sector activity and in the private sector activity- Organized, specialized, professionalized character - the two phenomena are tightly linked, connection resulted from the existence in any criminal organization of a post of corrupting, that person who interferes for the mediation of certain activities, services which in a situation of normality does not require any intervention. …