Measuring Organised Crime in Belgium

The analysis of organised crime is of interest to academics, policymakers, and regulators.The approach taken is necessarily determined by the requirement for analysis and the available resources.This book is the outcome of a six-month research undertaken for the Belgian Gendarmerie, at Ghent University. It presents a methodology to measure the impact of organised crime in Belgium and its research design has been shaped primarily by the demands of applied research. In doing so the research draws extensively from a breadth of research into organised crime while being shaped by the intelligence and policy requirements of the Gendarmerie's Organised Crime unit.This is reflected in the use of a risk-management process that provides the iterative framework for the methodology. Central to this is a three-fold focus that incorporates organised crime groups, illicit markets and economic sectors. Each element relies upon a different method of analysis, however their complementarity is ensured through the organising principle of the spectrum of enterprise.The result is a methodology that is capable of being incorporated into existing systems and provides a richer form of strategic assessments regarding the impact of organised crime in Belgium.