Drugs and Crime

This chapter focuses on the relationship between various types of crime and drug abuse. It comprehends the extent of the police corruption problem as it pertains to drug trafficking. It discusses the domestic and international problem of money laundering, who the money launderers are, and how they operate. The term “drug-related crime” represents many types of criminal activity. Although many people consider drug crimes to be street crimes (for example, robbery, assault, burglary, and murder), other crimes also accompany drug abuse. The crime (street crime) rate for drug users is four to six times as high as for people who do not use drugs. The ancillary crimes, such as corruption and money laundering, accompany drug use. Official corruption poses a major problem for drug-control strategists and enforcement officials. Corruption is pervasive and takes any of several forms, from bribery, extortion, favoritism, and mooching to more serious types of corruption such as perjury, premeditated theft, and shakedowns of suspects. The drug trade can penetrate even the most reputable of professions. Many drug source countries, such as Colombia, Peru, and Myanmar, are experiencing criminal forces that threaten to rival the legitimate government because of political influence gained through payoffs. The laundering of illegally obtained currency is a logistical problem for many organized crime operations. The trafficker's basic concern is how to transform illegally obtained money to currency that appears to be legitimate. The chapter also describes the legal tools that are available to prosecutors to combat money laundering.