You will know them by their fruits: what suspicious transactions say about online fraudsters, human and drug traffickers

• In Event: Money laundering from a variety of criminal markets: the role of offenders and of intermediaries

Abstract

Given that different forms of crime have their own (sub)crime scripts, it is also likely that each crime has its own unique set of financial trails. At the same time, however, criminals from different 'professions' may exhibit similar spending or investment patterns. In the latter category fall, for instance, buying Veblen goods like watches and expensive cars, gambling or investing in crypto valuta. In this presentation, we take a closer look at what financial gatekeepers report on three distinct types of criminals, i.e. bank help desk fraudsters, drug and human traffickers. To what extent can we distinguish differences and similarities in their financial patterns? The data used for this presentation came from the Dutch police and FIU. The study covers a period of 2020-2023 and involves over 10,000 reported transactions. It turns out that certain characteristics can indeed be identified for each crime type, some of which are linked to the crime itself, such as the prevalence of clients paying prostitutes in cash in contrast to bank fraudsters who wire electronic money. However, the analysis also reveals significant variations within each crime category, making it less practical to attribute individual transactions to a specific crime form. Nevertheless, by focusing on general differences between the three crime types, it is possible to gain more knowledge about each group’s financial preferences to some extent.

Author

• Melvin Soudijn, National Police of the Netherlands (KLPD)