Criminal Markets

A recent study shows how online platforms are fueling the trade of endangered species, from shark jaws to bird eggs. By analyzing thousands of online listings, researchers revealed just how widespread and easy this illegal market has become, raising new challenges for conservation and law enforcement.

A quick guide to spotting the signs of tax avoidance schemes, part of HMRC's 'Don't get caught out' campaign.

Rezan Epözdemir, a Turkish lawyer known for representing clients in several high-profile murder and fraud cases, has been arrested on charges of “acting as an intermediary in bribery,” Turkish Minute reported Thursday. Epözdemir, 41, was taken into custody August 10 in İstanbul as part of two separate investigations led by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. Prosecutors […]

On August 18, 2025, the political landscape of Bangladesh was rocked by a series of dramatic developments that have thrown the country’s interim government, led…

Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned four Mexican individuals and 13 Mexican companies linked to timeshare fraud led by the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG).   

The president’s son, known as Teodorin, has repeatedly caught the attention of international authorities, including in France where a messy legal battle is underway after French authorities seized his luxury Parisian apartment block.

Emma Theofelus, minister of information and communication technology, at the Standard Bank Anti-Financial Crime Conference, Windhoek, 14 August 2025

The US Treasury Department has re-designated Moscow-based cryptocurrency exchange Garantex and sanctioned its successor, Grinex, along with three executives and six associated companies in Russi

Timothy McPhee has pleaded guilty to promoting a fraudulent tax shelter to taxpayers across the country for the purpose of evading federal income taxes.

Brazilian club Corinthians fires its president over allegations of embezzlement and money laundering

Paraguay corruption probe targets ex-President Abdo Benítez over $21M hidden in Seychelles offshore accounts. Investigation examines asset concealment, money laundering & political links. Get the latest facts.

Violence in Brazil’s northern and north-eastern regions is a growing concern. In 2023, the homicide rate in northern Brazil was 41.5% higher than the national average. Meanwhile, six of the 10 cities with the highest homicide rates in the country in 2023 were in the north-eastern state of Bahia. Rising insecurity in these regions has been driven by the country’s two mafia-style groups, Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) and Comando Vermelho (CV), moving into these areas.

Human trafficking and the smuggling of migrants continue to dominate political debates and multilateral discourse as leaders search for new tools and strategies to address these crimes. In this context, targeted financial and mobility sanctions have recently emerged as a high-profile option for policymakers. 

Illicit economies have been related in complex ways to the armed conflict and criminal governance in Colombia (CEV, 2022; Rettberg, Cárdenas, Ortiz-Riomalo, 2017). The development of these activities, along with state responses to control them, have had significant consequences for local economies and have also impacted the environment (Brombacher, Garzón & Vélez, 2021; UNODC, 2022; UNODC, 2021; Rubiano, Vélez & Rueda, 2020).

Foreign Office sending Margaret Hodge to British Virgin Islands to investigate slow progress against financial crime

The bloc must finally decide whether to finally adopt robust anti-corruption laws or continue with business as usual.

A major operation against human trafficking has resulted in the safeguarding of 1 194 potential victims and the arrest of 158 suspects. As part of ongoing investigations, an additional 205 human trafficking suspects have also been identified. The global crackdown focused on trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, forced criminality and forced begging, with a special focus on underage victims.

A Russian national is accused of laundering $530 million through Tether to evade US sanctions and fund restricted tech deals. Find out how he had laundered the money.

In recent years, Ecuador’s gold sector has transformed dramatically. Once a largely informal livelihood, artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) has evolved into a criminally exploited industry. This report investigates this transformation and the illicit gold supply chains that are fueling it.

OLAF has played a key role in supporting the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in its criminal investigation codenamed “Calypso”, which targeted a complex scheme involving the fraudulent import of textiles, footwear, e-scooters, e-bikes, and other goods into the European Union

In October 2024, Brazil, France and Peru tabled a resolution at the 12th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) for a new intergovernmental process to take stock of how the convention addresses crimes that affect the environment.

Tne characteristic of geocriminality is the use of proxies to destabilize neighbouring states, and Rwanda’s behaviour in the context of the M23 crisis is arguably a prime example. The armed rebel group operating in eastern DRC is, according to the UN Security Council, receiving support from the Rwandan Defence Forces (RDF).