Crime Analysis and Investigation - Research Paper Example

Crime Analysis and Investigation Introduction Theft at work is not very common although, the script of such operations can be a good example of situational crime. Of course, in an office environment, the scope of burglary, break-in, etc. is narrow for the working staff. Therefore, a corrupt functionary may indulge in sophisticated crime design to harness resources from the company for personal use without the company’s knowledge and consent. The most vulnerable processes and departments are in relation or association with the accounting operations. These sections can include billing, accounting, inventory management, collections, etc. When the executives handle large amounts of money, the may be tempted to carry out theft and forgery. Although we must not think that dishonesty has become a general trend, we must be aware of the fact that accountants, marketing and collections executives, Point of Sales (POS) professionals, etc. may attempt to steal money in the case they have a suitable opportunity to do so. Tendency of crime is like an opportunistic bacterium which thrives in favourable circumstances. The management must remain alert and arrange for proper surveillance. The Crime Script Theft at work is a sort of situational crime which is hard to detect and difficult to explain. Of course, if a whit collar or blue collar professional is indulging in criminal activities, she or he is risking her or his own career too. Resources The resources that an executive harnesses to conduct the theft at work are rather qualitative than quantitative. The executive would further exploit the opportunities and manipulate the system. Her or his main instruments are: Interpersonal skills Convincing power Knowledge of the organisational structure Capacity to identify and exploit the opportunities Socio-economic status IT Skills (since most of the contemporary business processes are computerised) Stages and Decisions The modus operandi can basically be three fold. It would consist of motive and identification of aims, planning, and implementation. In a generalised way, although we are prone to look into a criminal’s backgrounds and crime history; an executive who indulges in crime exploits his reputation and socio-economic status. Let’s consider two very general examples in this context: Example 1 Mr. X is a marketing executive in the collections process of a mid sized company. He needs a large amount of money just within two days. Although he has been a coveted performer and a reliable employee, he now plans to steal money from the company’s funds. Mr. X has very good convincing power and interpersonal skills. Next, he points out the customers who are most liable to the company. Then he offers these customers fake discount schemes and collects cash from them without the company’s knowledge or consent. Since the company conducts half yearly business reviews, he has enough time to get away with the money. Next, he prepares to patch up the fiscal discrepancies caused by his actions. Example 2 Mr. A is an analyst in a stock broking company. He plans to utilise the company’s resources to generate a fair amount of capital and then start his own business. Next, he utilises the powers vested in him by the company to sneak into the businesses of its clients. After that, Mr. A indulges in inside treading and obtains critical business information to shape up his own personal investment plans. He successfully hides his activities from his colleagues, the management, and the clients and generates money for his personal use without the knowledge or consent of the company concerned. In the above two examples, it is clear that if a professional intends to carry out theft at work, she or he can steal money, commodities, and critical information as well. Actors The actors in any crime script that entails theft at work would generally belong from sophisticated backgrounds. We can enlist the actors as the following: The executive Collaborators (if any) Colleagues Managers and superiors Customers and clients All the actors except the corrupt executive and her or his collaborators are made victims of the crime rather passively. Setting Up Clearly determine the aim. The aim can be procuring money, precious commodities or vital information. Establish team (if necessary) Plan the crime Exploit the organisational structure Convince the customers, colleagues, and most importantly, the management. Maintain secrecy of the operation Finally, achieve the desired goal (steal funds, commodities, information, etc.) Doing It The executive would implement her or his plan in a closed environment so that no information about the operation leaks. Least number of collaborators would be involved to maintain the secrecy and integrity of the operation. Finally, the money or information can be stolen by means of forgery and/or convincing. After that, suitable share must be given away to the collaborators (if any). Next, the executive must start patching up the fiscal and other discrepancies caused by her or his operation. The Literature Reviewed and Analysis How can we scrutiny the corrupt tendencies of an executive through psychological and risk assessment analyses? The question appears to be enigmatic indeed. Hence, there are little chances for a straight forward risk assessment in the cases of theft at work. However, this sort of failure on the part of the forensic psychiatrists and the professional assessors is a threat to public safety (Andrews & Bonta, 2007). Thus, analysis of the crime script structure is necessary so that the methodology and psychometry of the criminal operation can be comprehended. Executives are not professional criminals but they can still skilfully develop a plan to carry out the crime. Therefore, in similar cases of theft in work, the important factors of methodology and psychometry have to be assessed (Frase & Weidner, 2007). Professional criminals may undergo some sort of training in a crime syndicate to develop a shrewd mindset and criminal knack to carry out a crime. Also, criminal peers, sub-standard life-conditions, slum environment, etc. may lead an individual to criminal activities. But sometimes, deep rooted psychosomatic factors may explain an individual’s criminal behaviour (Hill & Robertson, 2003). For example, we have seen isolated cases where old people have indulged in minor crimes like shoplifting and trivial theft. Such individuals are often victims of loneliness, hopelessness, and other geriatric issues (Uncapher & Gallagher-Thompson, 1998). In the other cases, isolated criminal activities and indulgence in destructive processes may be explained by more complicated psychiatric issues like Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), Mood Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), etc. (Halgin & Whitbourne, 2006). A successful and settled individual with sound mental and physical health conditions generally supposed to avoid criminal activities lest she or he is caught and disgraced in public. In fact, most executives have a content life. Importantly, although a skilled professional does not have any criminal background, she or he can skilfully plan a complicated crime. Yet one may abruptly resort to theft at work due to financial pressure in the constraints of our complex socio-economic framework of today. Demand of fast cash and rapid promotion is a fact that explains a common problem of the contemporary fast life. In the days of globalisation, the demand of fast cash is often leading an individual to destructive practices (Hill, 2007). In “contextualising criminology”, we must not only research on the organised and professional crimes but also focus on the isolated cases (Walgrave, 2001). An empirical study, therefore, must relate to extensive case studies that would include the rare and unusual cases of crime as well. Background of a crime might be an important consideration, but it cannot be the only consideration. Hence, empirical studies are necessary (Sherman, 2009), supplemented by reflections on community psychology too. Community psychological studies would assist us in developing an insight of the circumstantial facts in an urban society (Reich et al, 2007). Contextually, we must also mention that sociologists have notices certain relationships between the crime graphs and the popularity of electronic gambling. Particularly, in the southern parts of Australia, this is progressively becoming a lifestyle issue (Wheeler et al, 2006). Hence, a combined effect of lifestyle issues and community behaviour can mould the bearing and activities of an individual, particularly in the urban societies of the countries like Canada, New Zealand, Australia, etc. In Mr. X’s case, the reason to procure fast case might be embedded in the contemporary lifestyle and complex socio-economic perspective in a generalised sense. It is natural that an individual would not afford to lose her or his social stature in a society where status is an important factor and money really matters. And in order to save one’s social reputation, she or he may take on some illicit means to procure money in a concealed way. For example, In order to maintain the secrecy of his crime, Mr. X seeks to carry out the forgery by issuing fake bills and showing the customers false lead conversions. In fact, any corrupt functionary would show such tendencies. An individual’s struggle to sustain her or his reputation can be appreciated, but carrying out a crime in doing so cannot be justified. Hence, such cases can be incorporated in the larger sphere of contemporary criminology (Walgrave, 2001). A skilled executive like Mr. X or a shrewd analyst like Mr. A generally obtains considerable reputation at the workplace. This is again explained by the fact that the companies tend to leave a number of associated processes to a capable professional. In this way, the professional becomes too powerful. Her or his works are seldom scrutinized and the professional becomes very commanding in her or his department. It is regrettable indeed if a person with adequate qualification and experience suddenly and secretly debauches her or his customers, colleagues, and company. This is hardly expected by anybody in general, and so the professional would obtain an upper hand in the primary stages of the crime. Often, organisations are not able to decide what to do when a case of treason is encountered. Employee integrity is a key issue and the company seeks to rely on its staff as far as the flow of information is concerned in a competitive environment. As the executive exploits her or his interpersonal skills, socio-economic status, and structure of the organisation, she or he appears to be able to emerge successful at least initially. As far as the social life of a typical executive is concerned, the person is well recognized for her or his commitments in social, political, and religious institutions. Due to the management’s admiration, the executive can capture the crucial information flow in regards of her or his department. According to the website balancedscorecard.org, the upward and downward information flow in a company or in any of its departments controls the vertical synchronisation between the staff and the management. To maintain the secrecy of his crime, for example, Mr. A exploits the management’s confident and lenient approach towards him. This can be marked as typical approach of the corrupt executive. Since the departmental information flow is appears to be largely in control, possibility of leakage of the data generated by the false leads is virtually zero. The idea of activity space in the Crime Pattern Theory describes how an offender would determine the aims in the course of her or his daily routine. Further, the three nodes of the individual’s routine life are (i) work, (ii) home and (iii) amusement. In between these nodes, the offender would look for opportunities of criminal activities (Felson, 2002). Executives prone to criminality can be understood by applying this theory. The criminal tendencies are actually hidden in the executives regular lifestyle itself, may be in her or his subconscious mind. Further in this context, we must also apply the Routine Activity Theory. The Routine Activity Theory states that criminal tendencies are normal. These tendencies dominate an individual as per the opportunities available to her or him to indulge in a crime. Hence, in the corporate environment, it is always wise to maintain surveillance so that the employees may not be “tempted” to do a crime. Another interpretation of the theory says that the majority of the crimes are actually the cases of petty theft. Such crimes generally remain unreported. The Generalised Preventive Measures The crime scenario is weird almost all over the world, even in the developed countries. According to the nationmaster.com, there had been 116 prisoners for every 100000 people in Australia during the year 2003. Almost 76% of the population believed in police efficiency. According to the Home Office’s Crime Reduction Programme (2003) in the UK, around 49% of the population of the country was a victim of some crime (‘Crime Uncover’ poll by the Observer, 2003). The world’s lone super power America has the highest rates of prisoners per capita. This alarming crime situation of the world compels us to reflect on the important subject of situational crime prevention. In Australia, the extravagant lifestyle of the cities like Sydney has been somewhat responsible for the rise on certain sorts of crimes. For instance, electronic gambling has led to widespread demands for quick money and hence increased criminal tendencies (Wheeler et al, 2006). In the case of Mr. X, we have seen that how a capable executive can manipulate the organisational structure of the company by using interpersonal skills and fabrication of fake vouchers and bills. The executive with suitable powers can collect money for personal use without the company’s knowledge and consent. This is the attitude of a typical corrupt functionary in a private bureaucracy. It can be said that Mr. A’s case is an illustration of corruption in the corporate sector. Corruption, in fact, has been a major challenge in the urban societies and corporate bureaucracy is not untouched by it (Clarke et al, 2002). Organised criminals have the support and infrastructure of a crime syndicate. The mindset of a professional criminal often depends on the group activity of the organised gang (Lampe, 2008). But a shrewd and capable executive can handle her or his project alone and independently. The approach might be simply featured by a motive, a plan, and a sequential process. In general, we use CCTV, locks, shutters, etc. to prevent crimes. However, a shrewd executive can develop a more sophisticated instrumentation. And in such sorts of cases, CCTV technology or improved locks cannot help the company much! Capable executives at the workplace, however, may find an opportunity to steal money, commodities, etc. from the workplace. The best defence they have is the management’s leniency towards them and confidence. Sometimes, this confidence on the part of the management may take the form of overconfidence and embolden the executive to indulge in corrupt activities and do theft at work. The executive may fabricate false bills and vouchers. This can be prevented if the company uses a system of imprinting holograms on the documents that are circulated inside and outside the various departments. Department specific holograms, barcodes, etc. can further help the organisation to prevent theft and forgery. The responsibility of authenticating the bills and lead conversion can be given to a different department (e.g., accounts department in case of collections) to decentralise power inside the corporate bureaucracy. The company must conduct the business reviews more frequently. Quarterly business reviews can help to detect corruption. The scope of suspense accounts should be restricted inside the company environment. A company’s system of late reviews and decentralised accounting can benefit the forger. If an employee, particularly of high status in the company, be given the power to handle her or his department specific accounting, she or he might indulge in theft. The management must not be overconfident about the employees’ integrity at the work place. If the top management conducts sudden scrutinies of the staff activities, theft at work can be restricted or totally prevented. For instance, if a top level manager had personally visited the collections’ department without any prior notice, Mr. X could be caught red handed. In fact, if there is a system of ‘unpredictable’ inspections in any organisation, the executives may not dare to indulge in theft lest they are suddenly caught. Someone’s past performance must not be given too much importance. Nostalgic behaviour on the higher management’s part is a hindrance in the way of situational crime prevention. In today’s challenging economic environment, an executive’s attitude may change suddenly and unexpectedly. The higher management must remain alert to a certain degree. Conclusion Corporate surveillance by utilising competent human agency and better technological equipments for authentication and certification must be considered as a separate and important subject. Proper surveillance can prevent both organised crimes and crimes in an organisation. If the goodwill in the market is regarded to be a critical factor in business expansion and sustained growth, reliable security instrumentation must be ensured. In devising a good security system, we must innovate rather than standardise. The usability of the parallel processes must be kept in tact. For example, too many security checks in the hotels can frustrate the tourists and adversely affect the tourism industry of the region concerned. Hence, the factor of convenience should be kept in mind so that the customers may not face too many difficulties in processing transactions, billing, entry & exit, etc. In the same context, the executives too must not be overpowered as much as she or he is tempted to do a crime by manipulating the organisation’s structure and exploiting the management’s confidence. References Andrews, D. A. & Bonta, J., (2007). Risk-Need-Responsivity Model for Offender Assessment and Rehabilitation. Ottawa: Securite Publique Canada. Arveson, P. (1999). Implementation Tips from Paul Arveson . Balanced Scorecard Institute . Retrieved May 14, 2010, from http://www.balancedscorecard.org/BSCResources/CascadingCreatingAlignment/Applications/tabid/117/Default.aspx Felson, M. (2002). Crime and Everyday Life. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Frase, R. S., & Weidner, R. R. (n.d.). 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