Drug Trafficking As A Complex Transnational Crime

Despite all the international collaborative efforts and policies directed on prevention and controlling the supply and demand of drugs, drug trafficking still remains one of the most relevant and complex transnational crimes and illicit activity which crosses borders in a large extent. Drug trafficking brings lucrative profit that lures drug traffickers and other actors of this activity find the demand of drugs. They use different ways to drugs be trafficked and drug trade to be organized by using a myriad of techniques, methods, distribution strategies, routes, structures of organizations, and organized crime networks to drugs been transported and consumed.

Drug trafficking is a long, complex chain that includes sequential stages of distribution: growing or producing, manufacturing, importing or smuggling, wholesale distribution, regional distribution, and street-level distribution that finally lead to drug consumption. Each stage requires a wide range of participants not only on the local level but also actors from different states and ethnics from stages of production to consumption.

On a transnational level drug traffickers take into account routes through which they can move drugs. They prefer countries with a predominantly high level of corruption that give them the opportunity to be protected by corrupted authorities and avoid conviction and prosecution. They find was where is border and custom control on the low level and fewer law enforcement. The drugs usually transport in economically stable-developed (USA) states from less industrialized and weak economically-developing states (Colombia).

Globalization and rapid evolution of technologies provide a great opportunity for drug traffickers to succeed and achieve their goals. Nowadays, technologies provide a considerable opportunity for drug traffickers to communicate easily, expand their networks, advertise production on the darknet, transact money through converting them in cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin as well as launder them through the darknet. Offenders may hide their profits from illicit activities in the digital space and nobody ever can find how much, when, who and for whom money was sent.

Globalization has exacerbated the level and extent of crime. It has turned crime into more serious forms. The open boundaries, accessible opportunities to travel, and also illegal border cross from state to state allow migrants legal/illegal, travelers, asylum seekers, and “tourists” whose purpose is to carry out illicit activities cross from one state to another for a various purposes which are not always legal. Offenders use different methods to conceal and transport drugs sometimes by their own will sometimes they forced to do so by criminals. People conceal drugs by surgically implant them in man’s thigh, hide in wigs, soles of shoes, furniture, in body cavities and ingested, or stashed in the manifold of an engine. By talking about a generous amount of drugs, it can be presented as legal goods which are thoroughly camouflaged that are trade to another state by container ship.

Drug trafficking is one of the most lucrative illicit activates which engages criminals all over the world get profit from it. There are vast range of facilitating factors such as corruption, money laundering, globalization and evolution of technologies that allow criminals to commit crimes faster, easier, and more complicated for law enforcement agencies and control organization to prevent, combat, and make researches on drug trafficking