NCJ Number
227258
Journal
Global Crime Volume: 10 Issue: 1-2 Dated: February-May 2009 Pages: 24-40
Date Published
February 2009
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This study investigated the regional economic influence of the Hells Angels in three illegal drug markets in the Province of Quebec.
Abstract
Self-report survey and size of population methodologies were combined to assess the regional economic influence of a criminal organization, the Hells Angels, in three illegal drug markets: the cocaine trade, the cannabis trade, and the cannabis cultivation industry. Findings suggest that a relatively small organization by conventional standards can nonetheless achieve a large influence on criminal markets. Data are presented which explain the estimates and the analytical strategy is described. The findings are then divided into three sections. The first section argues that the economic influence of a relatively small organization can be large and provides some data to estimate its scope. The second section explains why this influence expanded over a relatively short period of time. The final section explores some of the consequences that rapid growth in organizational influence may have had on the levels of dispute within Quebec's criminal milieu. Data were collected from 183 offenders, and arrest data on offenders arrested 1 or more times for cocaine or cannabis trafficking, or cannabis cultivation during 3 years (1997 to 1999) in Quebec. Tables and figures