In Pursuit of Illicit Goals: Structure, Dynamics, and Collapse of Crime Facilitating Networks in Jamaica

Abstract

Due to the emphasis on major urban areas, studies on the narcotics trade assume that there is very little or no variation in how criminal organizations operate. This dissertation moves beyond this narrow understanding by using multiple cases across Jamaica to examine the structural compositions, and the norms and processes that govern illicit networks. It does so through the concept of crime facilitating networks (CFNs), a new construct that explains how criminals and non-criminals strategically exploit different components of their alliances in order to obtain illegal profits. The study finds that CFN operations vary across geographic contexts and economic sectors.