ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a general overview of the threat posed by serious and organized crime (SOC) in the United Kingdom (UK). It begins by providing a working definition of organized crime and it then moves on to discuss the criminal activities of organized crime groups (OCGs) and the threat they present to the UK. The threat posed by OCGs is significant and they are involved in a very wide range of illegal activity. The ultimate goal of OCGs is to generate a profit from their illegal activities. The origins of the UK's money laundering policy are to be found not in the European Union (EU), but in US President Richard Nixon's declaration of the war on drugs in the early 1970s. Money laundering conducted by or on behalf of OCGs can occur in any country or city in the world, irrespective of the levels of compliance with the global AML legislative and preventative measures.
