Organized Crime

The FBI is dedicated to eliminating transnational organized crime groups that pose the greatest threat to the national and economic security of the United States. The Bureau has found that even if key individuals in an organization are removed, the depth and financial strength of the organization often allow it to continue, so the FBI targets entire organizations responsible for a variety of criminal activities. The Bureau draws upon the experience, training, and proficiency of its agents; its partnerships within the intelligence and law enforcement communities; and its worldwide presence, using sustained, coordinated investigations and the criminal and civil provisions of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).

To combat the ongoing threat posed by these groups, the FBI has a long-established—yet constantly evolving—transnational organized crime program dedicated to eliminating the criminal enterprises that pose the greatest threat to America. Dismantling and disrupting major international and national organized criminal enterprises is a longstanding area of Bureau expertise. The goal of the FBI is to bring down entire organizations, not just arrest select individuals.

The Bureau uses the RICO Act to expand criminal accountability for a number of “predicate offenses,” and to expand a single offense across multiple members of a criminal enterprise. Unlike typical investigations, which target a single criminal act, this multi-pronged approach allows the FBI to disrupt or dismantle the entire enterprise.

The FBI also employs a multifaceted approach to target TOC groups in an attempt to strategically remove their access to illegal proceeds, disable systems in place to accomplish their goals, and capture their members who often reside in safe haven countries.

Due to the transnational nature of these criminal enterprises, the FBI leverages political and law enforcement relationships domestically and abroad to combat the influence and reach of these organized crime groups. The Bureau deploys subject matter experts to international locations to develop strategies to address TOC matters impacting the region, as well as to identify targets of mutual interest.

The FBI also participates in selecting TOC groups to appear on the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Top International Criminal Organizations Target (TICOT) List, and contributes to the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) efforts to pursue criminal enterprises. Further, to pool resources and leverage technical and investigative expertise, the Bureau participates in many Organized Crime Task Forces consisting of state and local law enforcement partners in the U.S.