Lithuanian mafia
| Founding location | Kaunas, Vilnius |
|---|---|
| Territory | Lithuania, European Union, United Kingdom |
| Ethnicity | Lithuanian |
| Criminal activities | Drug trafficking, Arms trafficking, Assassination, Assault, Auto theft, Bank fraud, Blackmailing, Bribery, Car bombing, Contract killing, Extortion, Fraud, Human trafficking, Infiltration of Politics, Illegal gambling, Insurance fraud, Kidnapping, Money laundering, Murder, Police corruption, Political corruption, Racketeering, Tax evasion, Theft, Witness intimidation, Witness tampering. |
| Allies | Russian mafia British firms Irish Mob Turkish mafia Dutch Penose |
The Lithuanian mafia is a general term for organized criminal gangs that consist of ethnic Lithuanians. In Lithuania, they are largely based in Kaunas, but have traditionally operated in other major cities like Vilnius, Klaipėda, Panevėžys and the Samogitia region. Outside of Lithuania, they are mainly active throughout the European Union and the United Kingdom.
Lithuanian organized crime groups are considered to be the most influential criminal organizations to come from the Baltic States.[1] [2]
History
Organized crime in Lithuania came into existence after the fall of the Soviet Union in the 1990s. Due to the privatization of economic enterprises, they operated on the stogas principle where companies automatically had to pay extortion money to criminal organizations in order to operate a business.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, several criminal organizations rose to power. In Kaunas four criminal organizations became prominent: the Daktarai, the Daškiniai, the Senamiestis and the Kauliniai. In Vilnius, the most powerful ones were the Vilniusskaya Brigada and the Centurioni. The Tulpiniai and Žemaitukai brigades became the most powerful in Panevėžys, the Gaidjurgiai in Klaipėda and the Princai in Šiauliai.
Lithuanian criminal organizations were denominated as so-called Brigadas often named after their leader. The criminal organizations became dominant in Lithuanian society, infiltrating the military, the government and the banking sector. They had a hierarchical structure with a leader followed by bosses of divisions and brigadiers and soldiers. The organizations were renowned for their use of violence in the 1990s with high ranking police officers, judges, journalists and businessmen all becoming victims of organized crime assassinations.[1]
Activities
Lithuanian organizations are involved in a wide range of criminal activities, most notably arms trafficking, fraud, money laundering, car theft, extortion and drug trafficking.[3]
In terms of drug trafficking, there's an important focus on the smuggling of synthetic drugs and illegal tobacco.[2]
Most importantly, the Lithuanian criminal organizations have become one of the most important and professional players in the car theft racket. Luxury cars are stolen, dismantled in chop shops (often based in European countries outside Lithuania) and trafficked to Lithuania to be resold.[4] [5]
Notable present day groups
It is stated that seven major criminal organizations are based in Lithuania:[1]
- Agurkiniai
- Beglikiai
- Šmikiniai
- Žemaičiai
- Miliai
- Buduliai
- Švinius
Above groups are acknowledged to be large organizations with a notable hierarchy, active in diverse criminal activities and operations throughout the European Union.[3] Several other smaller criminal organizations still operate in the country.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 https://dspace.library.uu.nl/bitstream/handle/1874/358067/crime.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y [bare URL]
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://www.globalriskaffairs.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BalticStates_AT_2009-Kopie.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Criminality in Lithuania - The Organized Crime Index". ocindex.net.
- ↑ "Criminals responsible for stealing 28 luxury cars arrested". Europol.
- ↑ "Litouwse criminele bendes het best georganiseerd". myprivacy.dpgmedia.be.
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