Drug Trafficking and Ethnic Minorities in Western Europe

Abstract

Popular media as well as law enforcement agencies throughout Europe routinely identify members of ethnic minorities, and recent migrants in particular, as responsible for selling a large proportion of the illegal drugs that are consumed in Europe. Examination of the existing and modest research literature, as well as a careful reading of the official data, does indeed indicate that certain sectors of the drug market are dominated by a small number of specific immigrant groups. Turkish and Albanian ethnic groups largely control the importation, high-level trafficking and open-air retailing of heroin; Colombian groups dominate the importation of cocaine. However, there are other major sectors of the drug market, notably those for cannabis and synthetic drugs, in which native populations seem to be more important. We offer an explanation for this configuration in terms of the advantages conferred on specific immigrant groups by tighter connections to source and transhipment countries as well as by the lesser ability of police to gain cooperation within those immigrants' communities in the consuming countries.

Chinese organized crime and situational context: comparing human smuggling and synthetic drugs trafficking

“…Although it may be true that a particular ethnic group is largely involved in one specific sort of crime, or is extremely well positioned for particular criminal activities (e.g. [32]), this does not preclude their involvement in different illicit activities. Each type of crime imposes different requirements and can be analyzed from a situational perspective (e.g.…”

How Do Illicit Drugs Move Across Countries? A Network Analysis of the Heroin Supply to Europe

“…With regard to the drug trade in Western Europe, for example, Paoli and Reuter (2008) found that Turkish and Albanians dominate both the import and retail distribution of heroin, whereas Colombians have a leading role in the import of cocaine from South America. Along with the relative proximity to production or key trafficking countries, a large immigrant diaspora in several European countries is a common trait of these ethnic groups.…”

“…While a range of authors, such as Caulkins, Crawford, and Reuter (1993); Akyeampong (2005); Decker and Townsend-Chapman (2008); Paoli and Reuter (2008);and Kleemans (2013), provide some valuable insights, there is neither a systematic knowledge-base nor an established framework from which to explicate the geographical configuration of transnational drug trafficking routes. The contribution by Reuter (2014) centers on three models and marks the sole attempt to systematically organize knowledge about how smugglers choose drug routes.…”

“…In a similar vein, Nigerian traffickers are now increasingly playing an important role in the trafficking of cocaine. Despite Nigeria's distance from any significant producer or consumer country, the migration of 3 million Nigerians to Southeast Asia, the United States, Latin America, and Europe goes some way to helping us explain this emergent dynamic (Paoli & Reuter, 2008). Although easy access to suppliers and fertile ground for corruption may constitute a competitive advantage to be exploited in transnational drug trafficking activities, other authors stress the relevance of diasporas and social networks as crucial assets for transnational crimes in general (Bruinsma & Bernasco, 2004;Kleemans & van De Bunt, 1999;Soudijn & Kleemans, 2009;van Duyne, 1993) and drug trafficking specifically (Akyeampong, 2005;Zaitch, 2002).…”

Asterix and Obelix in Drugland: an introduction to the special issue on ‘drug markets’

“…Ethnicity remains an important explanatory variable for these drug markets (and many more). Although there is a high involvement of specific minorities in specific drug markets (see Paoli and Reuter, 2008), which is facilitated by the lack of alternatives and the fact that the drug market is -the only... equal opportunity employer‖ (Bourgois, 1998: 64), it is extremely difficult, due to the ‗openness' and multi-ethnic nature of the drug markets (Ruggiero, this issue), the practicalities involved in the (illegal) markets, the need for protection from law enforcement agencies, and the need for individuals with capital, skills, connections etc., for specific ethnic groups to be dominating the business.…”