Russian crime in the U.S.A
Russian crime in the USA deserves a brief side note.
According to what was declared in April of 1994 by Luis Freeh director of the F.B.I. "we are witnessing the emergence of Russian organised crime with the birth of incredibly strong criminal groups. And this is a big problem".
Police investigations and journalistic inquires have identified in the U.S. some areas in which Russian criminal groups operate: Los Angeles, San Francisco (California); Miami (Florida); Chicago (Illinois); Baltimore (Maryland); Detroit (Michigan); Lincoln (Nebraska); New York (New York); Cleveland (Ohio); Philadelphia (Pennsylvania); Seattle (Washington).
The situation appears so worrisome that the F.B.I. has created a specialised unit so as to avoid that these groups, which are already active, can "root" in the territory.
In effect, in recent years, many organisations have been identified, among them:
- Odessa, considered the most important Russian criminal group in the U.S.A.. It came to light at Brighton Beach between 1975 and 1981, and developed in the suburbs of San Francisco and Los Angeles. According to the California Department of Justice in the area of San Francisco Odessa counts about 60 members strictly organised;
- the Evangelical Mafia, which was identified in 1993 in Northern California, in Oregon, and in Washington, differs from other Russian groups as it doesn't seem to have ties with the mother country and operates, above all, in the area of Sacramento. Its members, mostly youths from 16 to 24 years of age, are specialised in car thefts and counterfeit of car-plates and serial numbers;
- the Armenians who operate in New York, Hollywood, and in California are interested in the smuggling of gasoline, and lately, also drug trafficking;
- the Chechenians, the most violent, are specialised in homicides and extortions;
- Organizatsiya is a multi-ethnic group: its members maintain relations, at an international level, with other criminal groups. They operate within commercial frauds, financial frauds, robberies, homicides, extortions, and drugs.
The features common toall these groups are the following:
- the organisations built on an ethnic basis are composed of a number of members which varies from 5 to 20;
- most members have a high cultural level and speak different languages;
- the associates avoid having contacts with the bureaucratic structures for fear of being identified;
- the groups are marked by a ferocious violence that, however, is used as "extrema ratio";
- they disdain established Authority and, often, confide in police corruption.
Among criminal activities, frauds against the nation and against private businesses represent the prevailing typologies.
However, the police force counter-action is fruitful.
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