Infiltration in legal businesses: a case study in Spain

Abstract

La infiltración económica a través del crimen organizado es una cuestión infraestudiada en España comparativamente con otros países. En esta comunicación se han estudiado 40 empresas que han sido infiltradas por el crimen organizado a través de documentos judiciales para conocer los motivos de infiltración y los modos de infiltración. Asimismo se han estudiado los sectores económicos infiltrados y las características de las empresas que han sufrido esta infiltración

In recent years numerous studies have focused on the infiltration in legal business of organized crime, i.e. the connection between organized crime and legal businesses. We review this phenomenon and analyze different methods of infiltration in legal markets, focusing on the different enterprise management strategies, ownership structures, the economic sectors and business activities, the geographical distribution, etc. Also, we analyze the connections between the infiltration and the criminal activities, highlighting common modus operandi, and its correlation with territorial socio-economic data, such as industry profitability.

Confiscated companies are commonly used as a proxy for business infiltration. Since information is difficult to gather and the final confiscation of companies is still scarce. We have analyzed supreme court sentences about organized crime in Spain from the period 2009 2018. Based on the 40 sentences that reported the instrumental use of companies, we have analyzed the 79 cases of business infiltration, characterizing both the type of business and the criminal activity of the organization. Typically, small service businesses, mainly hospitality and real estate, have been found. [The companies have moderate activity and low level of debts and innovation commitment, and they do not seem to be focused on neither creating new jobs for the organization nor to assign subcontracts to other companies of the criminal group.] Therefore, the social consensus is not sought from the local population. Also, territorial or local economic sector control does not seem to be a motivation for the infiltration of legal business.