Convergence of wildlife crime with other forms of organised crime

Our report examines the cross-cutting nature of wildlife crime and offers suggested recommendations for law enforcement and policy makers to increase their focus on crime convergence to better protect our vulnerable wildlife.

Case studies

Webinar

A set of 12 case studies that illustrate a range of converging crime types and typologies from around the world

Examples include six cases involving the trafficking of terrestrial wild animals, three cases involving fisheries crimes, and three cases involving timber crimes.

Case Study 1

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Elephant ivory, rhino horns, illicit drugs

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGIES
Opportunistic convergence and diversification of illicit commodities

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
East Africa

Case Study 1

Case Study 2

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Tiger parts and human trafficking

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Opportunistic convergence

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
Southeast Asia

Case Study 2

Case Study 3

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Live reptiles and migrant smuggling

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Unconfirmed – possibly complete “career shift”

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
South Asia

Case Study 3

Case Study 4

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Live reptiles and fraud

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Unconfirmed – possibly complete “career shift”

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
South Asia

Case Study 4

Case Study 5

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Wildlife (various) and gold/precious stones

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Diversification of commodities

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
Various

Case Study 5

Case Study 6

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Rhino horns and various fraud and smuggling crimes

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Opportunistic convergence

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
Europe

Case Study 6

Case Study 7

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Shark fins and illicit drugs

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Diversification of commodities

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
North America and East Asia

Case Study 7

Case Study 8

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Abalone and illicit drugs

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Transactional convergence of illicit commodities

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
Southern Africa

Case Study 8

Case Study 9

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Fish and human trafficking/ modern slavery

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Transactional convergence

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
Southeast Asia

Case Study 9

Case Study 10

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Timber and illicit drugs

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Diversification of commodities

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
Southeast Asia and South America

Case Study 10

Case Study 11

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Timber, corruption, and fraud

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Embedded convergence where the crime types are inextricably linked

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
South America

Case Study 11

Case Study 12

COMMODITIES INVOLVED
Timber, corruption, and money laundering

CONVERGENCE TYPOLOGY
Embedded convergence where the crime types are inextricably linked

GEOGRAPHIC REGION
Southeast Asia

Case Study 12

Convergence of wildlife crime with other forms of organised crime

In this report, we have combined our own data with information from open sources to contribute towards growing the knowledge base on the convergence of wildlife crime with other forms of organised crime.

Crime convergence should be further studied and integrated as part of the approach to tackle wildlife crime and organised crime more broadly, as improved understanding of this intersection can help to identify more strategic policy and law enforcement responses to address it.

Full report

Executive summary