Exploring Links Between International Organized Crime/Terror

Projecrt Summary 2003-IJ-CX-1019

The Transational Crime and Corruption Center at American University will analyze the relationship between international organized crime and terrorist organizations systematically in order to develope useful tools for law enforcement. Employing a method of intelligence analysis, an analytical framework will be established that maps the environment in which transnational organized crime and international terrorism groups operate. The framework utilizes prior research to identify each points for linkages between the two kinds of criminal conduct. A case study method will then be used to validate the utility of the indicators and assess the utility of current law enforcement information- gathering tools and investigative procedures in organized crime for possible application to counter-terrorism cases. The two specfic goals of this project are to: (1) Systematically address organizational and operational similarities and differences between transantional organized crime and international terrorist organization, identifying watch points and indicators of convergence, and (2) apply the results of this systematic analysis to asses the feasibility of current investigative techniques for organized crime and terrorism cases.