Studying Illicit Drug Trafficking on Darknet Markets: Structure & Organisation from a Canadian Perspective

Cryptomarkets are online marketplaces that are part of the Dark Web and mainly devoted to the sale of illicit drugs. They combine tools to ensure anonymity of participants with the delivery of products by mail to enable the development of illicit drug trafficking. 

Using data collected on eight cryptomarkets, this study provides an overview of the Canadian illicit drug market. It seeks to inform about the most prevalent illicit drugs vendors offer for sale and preferred destination countries. Moreover, the research gives an insight into the structure and organisation of distribution networks existing online. In particular, we provide information about how vendors are diversifying and replicating across marketplaces. We inform on the number of listings each vendor manages, the number of cryptomarkets they are active on and the products they offer. 

This research demonstrates the importance of online marketplaces in the context of illicit drug trafficking. It shows how the analysis of data available online may elicit knowledge on criminal activities. Such knowledge is mandatory to design efficient policy for monitoring or repressive purposes against anonymous marketplaces. 

Nevertheless, trafficking on Dark Net markets is difficult to analyse based only on digital data. A more holistic approach for investigating this crime problem should be developed. This should rely on a combined use and interpretation of digital and physical data within a single collaborative intelligence model.

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By:  Broséus J1, Rhumorbarbe D2, Mireault C3, Ouellette V3, Crispino F3, Décary-Hétu D4.

• 1Ecole des sciences criminelles, Faculté de droit, des sciences criminelles et d'administration publique, University of Lausanne, Switzerland. Electronic address: julian.broseus@unil.ch.
• 2Ecole des sciences criminelles, Faculté de droit, des sciences criminelles et d'administration publique, University of Lausanne, Switzerland.
• 3Département de Chimie, biochimie et physique, Laboratoire de recherche en criminalistique, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Québec, Canada.
• 4Université de Montréal, École de criminologie, Québec, Canada. 
• Forensic Sci Int. 2016 Mar 5;264:7-14. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2016.02.045

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From Exploitation to Industry: Definitions, Risks, and Consequences of Domestic Sexual Exploitation and Sex Work among Women and Girls

In the last 15 years, terms such as prostitution, sex trafficking, sexual exploitation, modern-day slavery, and sex work have elicited much confusion and debate as to their definitions. Consequently several challenges have emerged for both law enforcement in the prosecution of criminals and practitioners in service provision. This article reviews the state of the literature with regard to domestic, sexual exploitation among women and girls in the United States and seeks to (1) provide definitions and describe the complexity of all terms relating to domestic sexual exploitation of women and girls in the United States, (2) explore available national prevalence data according to the definitions provided, and (3) review the evidence of mental health, social, and structural risk factors at the micro-, mezzo-, and macrolevels…

In conjunction with sexual abuse and assault, other forms of nonsexual trauma, such as physical and emotional abuse, are also important risk factors to consider. One study of 278 sex workers in Miami found that 51% of their sample had experienced physical abuse and 65% had experienced emotional abuse, in addition to 53% who had experienced sexual abuse (Surratt, Kurtz, Weaver, & Inciardi, 2005). Childhood emotional abuse is also significantly associated with commercial sexual exploitation and may contribute to a younger age of entry into prostitution (Roe-Sepowitz, 2012).

Subsequent to victims’ trauma and abuse previously experienced before exploitation, research also supports that victims of sexual exploitation endure several forms of victimization during or in addition to ongoing sexual exploitation. One study examining health outcomes among domestic, sexually trafficked victims found that most victims had experienced physical violence (88.9%), sexual violence (83.3%), and psychological violence (100%) during sexual exploitation (Muftic & Finn, 2013). Additionally, a sexually exploited girl or woman will have a greater likelihood of exposure to violence and abuse from a pimp and/or someone purchasing sex from them. The additional control and coercion of sexual exploitation by a pimp also promulgates additional exposure to threatened or actualized assault or other forms of trauma. Of the 71 women controlled by a pimp in a Chicago study, 21% were threatened to be raped and more than half reported to have been sexually assaulted (Raphael, Reichert, & Powers, 2010).

PTSD and Depression

Exposure to various forms of violence is empirically linked to levels of PTSD and depression. Two multicountry studies examined issues of depression and PTSD among sex trafficking victims and found significant associations between these mental health issues and trafficking. Hossain and her research team (2010) found that more than half of the 204 trafficking victims interviewed across 12 countries met criteria for depression, and 77% had symptoms of PTSD. Although this well-known study was not conducted in the United States, it is frequently referenced in domestic literature and must be addressed accordingly. The second study found a 68% (n = 562) rate of PTSD across all sexually trafficked participants from nine countries and 69% (n = 87) among U.S. victims (Farley et al., 2004).

On a smaller scale, several domestic studies have found similar associations and prevalence rates of PTSD among sexually exploited women. Several studies of 100 participants or fewer showed that female victims of sexual exploitation experience rates of PTSD ranging from 27% (Wells & Mitchell, 2007) to 50% (Twill et al., 2010). Similarly, these types of studies showed depression rates of up to 60% (Roe-Sepowitz, 2012). Given the extreme trauma that victims of sexual exploitation face and the empirical link between trauma and PTSD as well as depression, high rates of mental health consequences unfortunately are expected in this population.

…Many domestic victims of sexual exploitation are vulnerable youth who are already involved in the foster care system (Fong & Berger Cardoso, 2010). Involvement in the foster care system may stem from child abuse and neglect (Miller et al., 2011) or from the loss of a parent through death, divorce, or abandonment (Clawson et al., 2009). Youth who are considered to live in “out of home” placements—including youth shelters, group homes, and foster care—are at greater risk of becoming victims of sexual exploitation (Rafferty, 2013). Qualitatively, many sexually exploited women and girls report themes of isolation and lack of connection and resources, often stemming from the child welfare system, foster care placements, and abandonment (Farley, 2004; Rabinovitch, 2008; Ugarte, Zarate, & Farley, 2003)…

Full article at:   http://goo.gl/1Y4GFg

By:  Lara Gerassi

Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Address correspondence to Lara Gerassi, Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA. Email: ude.ltsuw@issaregl.

Published online 2015 Apr 9. doi:  10.1080/10911359.2014.991055

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Combating Human Trafficking in the Sex Trade: Can Sex Workers Do It Better?

BACKGROUND:

The dominant anti-trafficking paradigm conflates trafficking and sex work, denying evidence that most sex workers choose their profession and justifying police actions that disrupt communities, drive sex workers underground and increase vulnerability.

METHODS:

We review an alternative response to combating human trafficking and child prostitution in the sex trade, the self-regulatory board (SRB) developed by Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee (DMSC, Sonagachi).

RESULTS:

DMSC-led interventions to remove minors and unwilling women from sex work account for over 80% of successful 'rescues' reported in West Bengal. From 2009 through 2011, 2195 women and girls were screened by SRBs: 170 (7.7%) minors and 45 (2.1%) unwilling adult women were assisted and followed up. The remaining 90.2% received counselling, health care and the option to join savings schemes and other community programmes designed to reduce sex worker vulnerability. Between 1992 and 2011 the proportion of minors in sex work in Sonagachi declined from 25 to 2%.

CONCLUSIONS:

With its universal surveillance of sex workers entering the profession, attention to rapid and confidential intervention and case management, and primary prevention of trafficking-including microcredit and educational programmes for children of sex workers-the SRB approach stands as a new model of success in anti-trafficking work.

Below:  Number of minors and unwilling adults identified by SRBs, 2001–11

Below:  SRB screening, 2009–11; minors, unwilling adults and willing adults

Below:  Proportion of minor girls and median age of sex workers in Sonagachi

Below:  A cycle of trafficking

Full article at:   http://goo.gl/2QjzrL

By:   Jana S¹, Dey B¹, Reza-Paul S², Steen R¹.

¹Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.

²Community Health Services, University of Manitoba, Manitoba, Canada.

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‘We are looked down upon and rejected socially’: A qualitative study on the experiences of trafficking survivors in Nepal

Background

The successful reintegration of sexual trafficking survivors into Nepalese society is challenging. This paper aims to explore the trafficking process, abuses faced during sexual slavery,and the challenges faced by women and girl survivors for successful reintegration.

Method

This exploratory study used qualitative methods to identify that poverty, illiteracy, lack of opportunities, and varied social stigma initiate the victimization process, and continuity of this vicious circle increases the risk for (re)entrapment.

Result

The reasons for sexual trafficking have also become the reasons for restricting survivors from opportunities for growth and mainstreaming.

Conclusion

Non-existent support systems, detachment from familial ties, being outcast by society, and an uncertain livelihood make reintegration difficult for survivors.

...Period of sexual slavery

The lives of the survivors during sexual slavery at the brothels speak of severe abuse. Arriving at a new place, without any acquaintances, and being subjected to continuous sexual slavery broke down the women. It was noted that the repeated physical violence and unwilling monotony of being just an object of sexual gratification caused the development of sudden suicidal tendencies in most of the trafficked survivors.

I landed in Hong Kong in the evening and was immediately taken to a hotel. After reaching the hotel, my passport was seized and then I was told that I had been sold for prostitution. At times, I used to hide in the warehouse filled with shoes and cover myself with the boxes. I felt that committing suicide was better than selling my body.

The survivors are cut off from the outside world and forced to live in conditions similar to a prison. The captors, on the other hand, use all kinds of methods to continue the enslavement of the trafficked; any documents of identification and money remaining to the survivors were immediately seized, and their movements were always monitored and restricted.

For three months, I didn't know that I had already been sold. There were almost seventy women from different countries in the building where I was kept. For three months, I kept nursing four to five children and learning the language. At the end of the three months, I was shifted to another room but in the same building. Since then, I had to offer sexual services to six to seven men during a day. After exactly a week, I thought of killing myself rather than living a life in hell. The living room of the house was ornamented with spears and swords; I managed to grab a spear and was determined to kill myself by plunging a spear in the electric circuit box. I remember waking up at the hospital with bandages below my waist. I stayed in the hospital for a month receiving treatments for my injuries and burns. After being discharged from the hospital, I was taken to the same house and kept under even stronger captivity on the twenty-fifth floor. I decided to escape using a rope made out of curtains, bedsheets, wire and quilt covers. I managed to reach the ground but my hands, knees, and legs were hurt badly and I was bleeding profusely. I walked into the Nepalese embassy, bleeding heavily with just a cloth wrapped around my body.

The survivors were subjected to severe inhumane practices. The consequence of continued physical abuse and repeated abortions also increase health risks. The survivors have to remain at the mercy of their captors if they develop any known symptoms of diseases, and spending money for health checkups does not fall in the priority list for these captors.

After reaching Lebanon, my passport was immediately seized and I started living as a prisoner in a big house. Later on, I realized that I was in a house where I had to sexually serve the owner and guests visiting the house. I found out that I had been sold for $1000. I felt like killing myself when I had to sleep with the drunken Arab men, but the constant thought of my child back home stopped me from committing suicide. I got pregnant twice and both times I was taken to a hospital for abortions. Later on, I was sent back to Nepal after two years with nothing but a developing child in my womb...

Full article at:   http://goo.gl/wqvaio

By:   Pranab Dahal,1,* Sunil Kumar Joshi,2 and Katarina Swahnberg1

¹Department of Health and Caring Sciences, Linnaeus University, Kalmar, Sweden

²Department of Community Medicine, Kathmandu Medical College, Kathmandu, Nepal

^*Correspondence to: Pranab Dahal, Department of Health and Caring Sciences, Linnaeus University, SE-391 82 Kalmar, Sweden, Email:es.unl@lahad.banarp

Responsible Editor: Isabel Goicolea, Umeå University, Sweden.

 

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The Beheading of Criminal Organizations and the Dynamics of Violence in Mexico

In this mixed-methods study, we adopted a feminist theoretical lens in conceptualizing gender as in 2006, the Mexican government launched an aggressive campaign to weaken drug-trafficking organizations (DTOs). The security policies differed significantly from those of previous administrations in the use of a leadership strategy (the targeting for arrest of the highest levels or core leadership of criminal networks). 

While these strategies can play an important role in disrupting the targeted criminal organization, they can also have unintended consequences, increasing inter-cartel and intra-cartel fighting and fragmenting criminal organizations. What impact do captures of senior drug cartel members have on the dynamics of drug-related violence? Does it matter if governments target drug kingpins versus lower-ranked lieutenants? 

We analyze whether the captures or killings of kingpins and lieutenants have increased drug-related violence and whether the violence spills over spatially. To estimate effects that are credibly causal, we use different empirical strategies that combine difference-in-differences and synthetic control group methods. 

We find evidence that captures or killings of drug cartel leaders have exacerbating effects not only on DTO-related violence but also on homicides that affect the general population. Captures or killings of lieutenants, for their part, only seem to exacerbate violence in “strategic places” or municipalities located in the transportation network. 

While most of the effects on DTO-related violence are found in the first six months after a leader’s removal, effects on homicides affecting the rest of the population are more enduring, suggesting different mechanisms through which leadership neutralizations breed violence.

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By:   Gabriela Calderón1,2, Gustavo Robles3,4⇑, Alberto Díaz-Cayeros5, Beatriz Magaloni3,5

1. ¹Dirección General de Investigación Económica, Banco de México, México City, México
2. ²Poverty and Governance Program, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
3. ³Political Science Department, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
4. ⁴Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law, Freeman Spogli Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
5. ⁵Freeman Spogli Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

1. Gustavo Robles, Political Science Department, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA. Email: grobles@stanford.edu

 

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Comparing Sex Buyers with Men Who Do Not Buy Sex: New Data on Prostitution and Trafficking

We investigated attitudes and behaviors associated with prostitution and sexual aggression among 101 men who buy sex and 101 age-, education-, and ethnicity-matched men who did not buy sex. 

Both groups tended to accept rape myths, be aware of harms of prostitution and trafficking, express ambivalence about the nature of prostitution, and believe that jail time and public exposure are the most effective deterrents to buying sex. 

Sex buyers were more likely than men who did not buy sex to report sexual aggression and likelihood to rape. Men who bought sex scored higher on measures of impersonal sex and hostile masculinity and had less empathy for prostituted women, viewing them as intrinsically different from other women. 

When compared with non-sex-buyers, these findings indicate that men who buy sex share certain key characteristics with men at risk of committing sexual aggression as documented by research based on the leading scientific model of the characteristics of non-criminal sexually aggressive men, the Confluence Model of sexual aggression.

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By:   Melissa Farley1, Jacqueline M. Golding2, Emily Schuckman Matthews3, Neil M. Malamuth4, Laura Jarrett5

1. ¹Prostitution Research & Education, San Francisco, CA, USA
2. ²Institute for Health & Aging, University of California, San Francisco, USA
3. ³Department of European Studies, San Diego State University, CA, USA
4. ⁴Communication and Psychology Departments, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
5. ⁵Chicago, Illinois

1. Melissa Farley, Prostitution Research & Education, P.O. Box 16254, San Francisco, CA 94116-0254, USA. Email: mfarley@prostitutionresearch.com

 

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A Short Screening Tool to Identify Victims of Child Sex Trafficking in the Health Care Setting

OBJECTIVES:

The aim of this study was to describe characteristics of commercial sexual exploitation of children/child sex trafficking (CSEC/CST) victims and to develop a screening tool to identify victims among a high-risk adolescent population.

METHODS:

In this cross-sectional study, patients aged 12 to 18 years who presented to 1 of 3 metropolitan pediatric emergency departments or 1 child protection clinic and who were identified as victims of CSEC/CST were compared with similar-aged patients with allegations of acute sexual assault/sexual abuse (ASA) without evidence of CSEC/CST. The 2 groups were compared on variables related to medical and reproductive history, high-risk behavior, mental health symptoms, and injury history. After univariate analysis, a subset of candidate variables was subjected to multivariable logistic regression to identify an optimum set of 5 to 7 screening items.

RESULTS:

Of 108 study participants, 25 comprised the CSEC/CST group, and 83 comprised the ASA group. Average (SD) age was 15.4 (1.8) years for CSEC/CST patients and 14.8 (1.6) years for ASA patients; 100% of the CSEC/CST and 95% of the ASA patients were female. The 2 groups differed significantly on 16 variables involving reproductive history, high-risk behavior, sexually transmitted infections, and previous experience with violence. A 6-item screen was constructed, and a cutoff score of 2 positive answers had a sensitivity of 92%, specificity of 73%, positive predictive value of 51%, and negative predictive value of 97%.

CONCLUSIONS:

Adolescent CSEC/CST victims differ from ASA victims without evidence of CSEC/CST across several domains. A 6-item screen effectively identifies CSEC/CST victims in a high-risk adolescent population.

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By:  Greenbaum VJ1, Dodd M, McCracken C.

• 1From the *Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and †Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA.

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Health of Men, Women & Children In Post-Trafficking Services in Cambodia, Thailand & Vietnam: An Observational Cross-Sectional Study

Trafficking is a crime of global proportions involving extreme forms of exploitation and abuse. Yet little research has been done of the health risks and morbidity patterns for men, women, and children trafficked for various forms of forced labour.

We carried out face-to-face interviews with a consecutive sample of individuals entering 15 post-trafficking services in Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam. We asked participants about living and working conditions, experience of violence, and health outcomes. We measured symptoms of anxiety and depression with the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist and post-traumatic stress disorder with the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire, and used adjusted logistic regression models to estimate the effect of trafficking on these mental health outcomes, controlling for age, sector of exploitation, and time in trafficking.

We interviewed 1102 people, of whom 1015 reached work destinations. Participants worked in various sectors including sex work (329 [32%]), fishing (275 [27%]), and factories (136 [13%]). 481 (48%) of 1015 experienced physical violence, sexual violence, or both, with 198 (35%) of 566 women and girls reporting sexual violence. 478 (47%) of 1015 participants were threatened and 198 (20%) were locked in a room. 685 (70%) of 985 who had data available worked 7 days per week and 296 (30%) of 989 worked at least 11 hours per day. 222 (22%) of 983 had a serious injury at work. 61·2% (95% CI 58·2-64·2) of participants reported symptom of depression, 42·8% (39·8-45·9) reported symptoms of anxiety, and 38·9% (36·0-42·0) reported symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. 5·2% (4·0-6·8) had attempted suicide in the past month. Participants who experienced extremely excessive overtime at work, restricted freedom, bad living conditions, threats, or severe violence were more likely to report symptoms of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

This is the first health study of a large and diverse sample of men, women, and child survivors of trafficking for various forms of exploitation. Violence and unsafe working conditions were common and psychological morbidity was associated with severity of abuse. Survivors of trafficking need access to health care, especially mental health care.

Full article at: http://goo.gl/IITBkN

By: Kiss L1, Pocock NS2, Naisanguansri V3, Suos S4, Dickson B5, Thuy D5, Koehler J3, Sirisup K5, Pongrungsee N5, Nguyen VA5, Borland R5, Dhavan P5,Zimmerman C2.

• 1London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK. Electronic address: ligia.kiss@lshtm.ac.uk.
• 2London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
• 3International Organization for Migration, Hainoi, Vietnam.
• 4International Organization for Migration, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
• 5International Organization for Migration, Bangkok, Thailand.  

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Socio-Structural & Behavioral Risk Factors Associated with Trafficked History of Female Bar/Spa Entertainers in the Sex Trade in the Philippines

To explore factors associated with trafficking (deceptive/coercive entry to sex trade) among female bar/spa entertainers who traded sex in the Philippines.

Female bar/spa entertainers who traded sex in the past 6 months were recruited from 25bar/spa venues in Metro Manila (April 2009-January 2010) and assessed via cross-sectional survey data collection for HIV-risk-related socio-structural factors associated with deceptive/coercive entry into the sex trade. The study employed hierarchical linear modeling.

Of 166 bar/spa entertainers assessed, 19 (11.4%) reported being deceived/coerced (i.e. trafficked) into their first jobs. Trafficking history was independently associated with current drug use decreased availability of condoms at venues for entertainers and, conversely, increased peer support for practicing safer sex behaviors. Those deceived/coerced into their positions were more likely than non-trafficked women to have been recruited by an agency who came to their rural province as opposed to getting the job from advertisement or a friend/acquaintance.

The findings have implications for designing interventions to prevent and target trafficked women in the Philippines who may be more vulnerable to substance use and, potentially, HIV infection.

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By: Urada LA1, Halterman S2, Raj A3, Tsuyuki K3, Pimentel-Simbulan N4, Silverman JG3.

• 1Division of Global Public Health, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA. Electronic address: lurada@ucsd.edu.
• 2School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
• 3Division of Global Public Health, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
• 4Department of Behavioral Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines, Manila, Philippines. 

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The Sexual Exploitation of Girls in the United States: The Role of Female Pimps

The role of women in the sex trafficking of minors in the United States has received limited research attention. 

Case study analysis of 49 female pimps from federal, state, and local cases were analyzed to explore whether there were differences in the penalties given to females when compared with their male co-defendants, and cross-case analysis was conducted to identify themes that represent female pimp typologies. 

Both prison sentence and probation sentences were significantly lower for female co-defendants when compared with their male co-defendants. Five discrete typologies were developed including 

• Bottom, 
• Madam/Business Partner, 
• Family, 
• Girilla, and 
• Handler. 

Each of these had unique features regarding violence toward their minor victims, co-defendants, actions during the sexual exploitation of the minor, and sentencing outcomes. Implications for practice and future research were recommended.

Via: http://ht.ly/SMr3W Purchase full article at: http://goo.gl/c1EiMJ

By: Roe-Sepowitz DE1, Gallagher J2, Risinger M3, Hickle K4.

• 1Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA
• 2Phoenix Police Department, AZ, USA.
• 3Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA.
• 4University of Sussex, UK.

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