The report from the Flemish Peace Institute also reveals that violence linked to drug trafficking is more frequent and more intense. They also increasingly involve minors and people in precarious situations.
The report highlights that violence deployed to control the drug market is not a new phenomenon, but its extent and intensity have only increased in recent years. The people interviewed as part of the study also believe that traffickers are no longer afraid of the police and justice, but only of rival gangs.
According to the Flemish Peace Institute, we are also witnessing an increasing professionalization of criminal structures. The latter in particular make greater use of the division of labor, summarized under the notion of “crime as a service” (or “crime as a service”). Networks thus delegate parts of the criminal process, such as acts of violence, to external service providers. Minors are often recruited by criminal networks from among the vulnerable population and led to commit these acts of violence.
“They are lured by the promise of a considerable sum of money in exchange for ‘odd jobs’, but these can range from standing guard during a deal to shooting or planting explosives in front of a home.” , notes the report. Other people in precarious situations, such as young asylum seekers, are also often recruited, because it is sometimes the only way for them to provide for themselves and their families, the report adds. Finally, he emphasizes that this recruitment is not always done voluntarily and that it is very difficult to leave the network.
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