Using Crime Analysis: Tempe police make 103 arrests in May crime fight

This article highlights targeted enforcement using crime analysis.

DNA in “Minor” Crimes Yields Major Benefits in Public Safety

Some interesting reading...
DNA in “Minor” Crimes Yields Major Benefits in Public Safety
DNA Analysis for “Minor” Crimes: A Major Benefit for Law Enforcement
DNA solves more than the biggest crimes
DNA testing used to bust busy burglars
DNA trail yields burglary charges
How Bristol will beat the burglars

OCEANSIDE: Safety alerts go high-tech

A new way for crime analysts to share information - read this news article.

Criminal teams robbing gated communities in Port St. Lucie

Here is a news article on traveling criminals.

Russian Organized Crime Fact Sheet

This fact sheet is interesting and may be useful.

Crime Pattern ID: Jewelry Store Theft

Pattern: Jewelry Store Theft

Victims: jewelers, department stores

Perpetrators: often teams, often are professional thieves

Locations: jewelry stores and jewelry counters at other types of stores

Times: no specific time pattern

Entry/Approach Methods: may case store, may come in one day and come back another, operate in pairs or more

Weapons: on occasion jewelry store robberies escalate to murder

Tools: burglary tools in burglaries, have been known to smash vehicles into stores to grab items

Vehicles/Transportation Routes: jewelry theft rings travel across jurisdictions

Stolen Goods: jewelry, precious metals

Method: distraction, returning purchases with counterfeit jewels, need a fence for jewelry, smash and grabs, may cut security gates, may disable alarms

Motive: profit

Query Terms: jewelry, gold, diamond, silver, platinum, emerald, ruby, sapphire, pearl, distract, counter, grab, fake

Suggestions: track all jewelry thefts – even residential, looking for patterns, find out where fencing of jewelry may take place, track known criminals of this type

Resources:

Jewelry & Gem Theft

5 Types of Jewelry Store Thefts and How to Prevent Them

The Real Intelligence Failure? Spineless Spies.

Here is an article by Mark Lowenthal in today's washingtonpost.com...

Historians and Their Information Sources

Historians and Their Information Sources is an article I stumbled upon as I was doing research for my novel, which surprisingly has two main characters who are analysts - one of the characters is a history major. I encourage you to read this article to see the similarities between being a crime/intelligence analyst and being a historian.Borrowing the best practices, or at least relevant practices, from other disciplines is key to the growth of crime and intelligence analysis in policing.

Crime Pattern ID: Graffiti

Pattern: Graffiti 

Victims: creating graffiti is an act of vandalism on a property and some graffiti are indicators of gang activity

Perpetrators: mostly male 11-25 years old “taggers” who generally consider themselves urban artists or gang members

Locations: walls, rooftops, commercial building, water towers, trains, highway underpasses and overpasses – anywhere graffiti can be made – sometimes on gang territory housing

Times: from dusk to dawn, graffiti may be produced late at night when taggers can work undiscovered – gang graffiti can be produced more quickly and may be done anytime a site is unattended

Entry/Approach Methods: taggers take risks to make their mark on building, etc and break into building to do their work as well as trespass

Tools: spray paint, chalk, markers, camera to take photos

Vehicles/Transportation Routes: vary

Method: use paint or markers to create images on surfaces

Motive: gang members use graffiti to communicate who may be their next murder victim and who was killed in their gang as well as to mark territory, while other taggers seek to express themselves and be perceived as daring, some graffiti has political purposes (rebellion)

Query terms: spraypaint, spray, backpack, paint, painted, tag, graffiti (and possible misspellings of word), can, mask, etching, stencil, notebook, markers

Suggestions: some agencies have databases for their graffiti, task forces to take photos and use graffiti to understand gang issues, taggers can be prosecuted with good documentation of cost of their vandalism to community, ask officers to use charge of graffiti making in their reports to track this crime

Resources:

Preventing Graffiti

Graffiti Statistics United States

Westchester opens high-tech crime analysis lab

An article....

Crime Pattern ID: Bank Robbery

Pattern: Bank Robberies

Victims: financial institutions, banks and credit unions

Perpetrators: variety of perps, from inexperienced (usually drug addicts) to professional (less common), may work alone or in teams

Locations: inside bank – ATM (automatic teller) crime may be involved as well

Times: varies, but serial robbers often follow a pattern in time of day, day of week

Entry/Approach Methods: perps may stake out banks, target banks with easy escape routes, generally robbers just walk in bank

Weapons: often use note with threat of weapon and no weapon is seen, sometimes gun is seen

Vehicles/Transportation Routes: vary, banks in strip malls and/or near highways may be targeted as more vulnerable, may have get-away car accomplice

Stolen Goods: cash – often with dye-pack

Method: suspect may ‘case’ bank undetected prior to robbery, may wear disguise, may bring bag for cash – type of bag may be similar in series so is something to track, may jump over counter, may force victims to the ground, may target same type bank branches, tends toward becoming a serial crime if suspect has success, may be multiple suspects

Motive: cash

Query terms: bank, credit union, safe, unlock, alarm, vault, safety deposit, deposit, names of banks

Suggestions: Map all banks in your jurisdiction, including credit unions. If possible, get data on ATMS, track all known bank robbers on parole in your jurisdiction – know their MO. Familiarize yourself with bank robbery prevention techniques.

Resources:

COPS Problem Oriented Policing Guide “Bank Robbery”

Bank Robbery: Prevention and Awareness

Crime Pattern ID: Theft from Coin Machines/Devices

Pattern: Theft from Coin Machines/Devices

Victims/Targets: pay phones, vending machines, dart board and pool table games, arcade games, coin washer and dryers, newspaper vending machines

Perpetrators: usually drug addicts, may be juveniles, sometimes inside job – larceny by employees

Locations: wherever there are coin vending machines/devices requiring coins

Times: thieves target locations when no one is around

Entry/Approach Methods: no specific type associated with this crime

Tools: prying tools, sometimes smash machines, use special tools at times

Stolen Goods: coins, possibly will get bills in certain machines

Method/Motive: perpetrators will target unattended coin machines for quick cash -

severe vandalism sometimes accompanies activity, unsuccessful attempts are common

Query terms: coin, machine, vending, dart, game, pool, billiard, washer, dryer, newspaper

Suggestions: find out who is responsible for machines and advise them of methods to secure them/protect them from larceny/burglary, possibly install surveillance in some situations. This can be a serial crime - track previous offenders as well as larceny/burglaries/and vandalism related to coin machines/devices.

Resources:

STEPS TO AVOID VENDING MACHINE THEFT AND BEEF UP YOUR SECURITY

What You Need To Know About Vending Machine Hacking

Intelligence-Led Policing

This blog post on ILP is interesting.

Greeley, Weld police T.R.A.C. the bad guys

This is a nice news article featuring crime analyst Sally Ainsworth.

CIA's Kent Center Occasional Papers

While these papers deal with national security, they are very specific to analytical work and some of the perspectives translate to the work of crime and intelligence analysis in policing.

Volume 1:

No. 1: Improving CIA Analytic Performance: Strategic Warning

No. 2: Improving CIA Analytic Performance: Analysts and the Policymaking Process

No. 3: Improving CIA Analytic Performance: DI Analytic Priorities
No. 4: When everything is intelligence - nothing is intelligence

No. 5: Sherman Kent and the Profession of Intelligence Analysis

Volume 2:

No. 1: Strategic Warning: If Surprise is Inevitable, What Role for Analysis?

No. 2: Tensions in Analyst-Policymaker Relations: Opinions, Facts, and Evidence

No. 3: Sherman Kent's Final Thoughts on Analyst-Policymaker Relations

Volume 3:

No. 1: Making Sense of Transnational Threats

No. 2: Rethinking “Alternative Analysis” to Address Transnational Threats

Crime Pattern ID: Counterfeit DVDs

This pattern may be found in larger cities and be an indicator of funding for organized crime/terrorism.

Pattern: Counterfeit DVDs

Victims: Intellectual Property Crime

Perpetrators: Sometimes inside job, variety of perps, known to be mechanism to fund terrorism/organized crime

Locations: global, locally look for delis, stores selling them

Times: not a factor for analysis

Tools: sellers may not be counterfeiters, tools not obvious to law enforcement as indicator, labels, dvds, computers etc. may be evidence

Vehicles/Transportation Routes: sometimes counterfeit goods are sold out of the back of trucks and other vehicles, large shipments of counterfeit dvds sometimes recovered enroute

Stolen Goods: Have identifying marks/details, read more about them below in resource section

Method: Since it is fairly easy to download dvds illegally, and many places sell dvds, this crime is undetectable without proactive investigations

Motive: financial gain

Query terms: dvds, fake, phony, counterfeit, delis

Suggestions: Track any arrests for these types of crimes and not arrestees due to possible link to terrorist financing issues, note patterns of location

Resources:

Reporting Intellectual Property Crime: A Guide for Victims of Counterfeiting, Copyright Infringement, and Theft of Trade Secrets

Protecting the Motion Picture Industry From Intellectual Property Theft

Crime Mapping and Analysis: GIS Lounge Article

This Crime Mapping and Analysis GIS Lounge Article provides some resources.

Crime Pattern ID: Cab/Taxi Driver Victims

Pattern: Cab/Taxi Driver Victims

Victims: Cab/taxi drivers

Perpetrators: Usually lone males, sometimes two or more males

Locations: Usually in a city

Times: Late at night, infrequently in daytime

Entry/Approach Methods: When fare is dropped off, victim is robbed by the fare – sometimes robbery occurs during the ride

Weapons: more often gunpoint, sometimes knifepoint

Vehicles/Transportation Routes: Suspects will more often be let out of cab at an intersection rather than a particular address

Stolen Goods: Cash, sometimes wallet

Method: Robbery occurs during normal course of cab ride – suspect calls cab or hails cab and then robs victim, suspect may wear a disguise, sometimes violent

Motive: Crime of opportunity, sometimes becomes a serial crime

Query terms: cab, taxi, fare, driver, meter

Suggestions: Track all robberies of this type in one file to note a series of crimes early. Analyze by cab company, by time of day, by geography, by weapon, by suspect(s) description, by victimology (old cab driver? young? race?). Track where rides begin and where they end.

Resources:

Problem Oriented Policing Guide Robbery of Taxi Drivers

Safety Tips for Taxi Drivers: How to Prevent Robbery and Violence

Crime Pattern ID: Elderly Victims

Pattern: Elderly Victims

Victims: Elderly persons (may range anywhere from 50-100 as youths perceive age, but 65+ is targeted as elderly in official statistics)

Perpetrators: Traveling criminals sometimes target this population, sometimes groups of young males target elderly victims, health care aides may take advantage of their charges, the elderly are victims of financial scams, the elderly are sometimes victims of serial home invaders

Times: Time of day is not a significant factor except in serial crimes; spring and fall are times when traveling criminals are more active

Entry/Approach Methods: Traveling criminals way come to the door offering home repair services, sometimes a pair of women comes to the door and when one is keeping the victim busy the other steals things, telephone/mail solicitors may scam the elderly and get them to withdraw money from the bank

Weapons: Force is used in home invasions – sometimes victims are bound. Intimidation and fear are used. Scam artists use ruses.

Vehicles/Transportation Routes: Traveling criminals have routes and move up and down the U.S. Youths who target the elderly usually live right in the same neighborhood and travel by foot

Stolen Goods: Cash, jewelry, other valuables are taken.

Method: Victims are sometimes targeted by youths in their neighborhood who know the pattern of the victims’ behavior. The more vulnerable elderly are identified before being targeted.

Motive: Ease of victimization, cash

Query terms: elderly, old, ages ranges of victims (50+), home, residence, aide, glass of water, foreign, accent, home repairs, roofing, withdraw, scam, fraud.

Suggestions: The elderly can only be identified if officers collect data on age of victims – make sure this is possible in your agency. Collect all crimes targeting elderly and look for patterns – keep this up-to-date. Identify any past perpetrators who have targeted the elderly and keep information on them and their MOs in a file. If there is a relevant crime pattern, work with senior centers and other agencies to increase community awareness and efforts to protect this population.

Resources:

POP Guide Financial Crimes Against the Elderly

Crimes Against Seniors

Crime Pattern ID: Food Delivery Robberies

Food delivery persons are in the fifth most dangerous job, according to some reports. Robberies of pizza delivery persons and Chinese food delivery persons are likely to be found in any urban crime data. These crimes do become serial in nature so it is important to track them 

Pattern: Food Delivery Person Robberies

Victims: Pizza delivery persons, Chinese restaurant delivery persons

Perpetrators: Most often lone males or small groups of males, often teens

Locations: Driveways, alleys, sometimes at vacant houses, sometimes hide in buses, hallways

Times: Most often in the evening

Entry/Approach Methods: Suspects may attack delivery person from behind or lure them to door of building they do not inhabit and rob them.

Weapons: Food delivery robberies are often committed at gunpoint. Victim are sometimes assaulted, but usually escape physically unharmed.

Tools: Suspect may call to order food using cell phones they purchase and then discard – sometimes they use their own phones which then can be traced.

Vehicles/Transportation Routes: Suspects often flee on foot.

Stolen Goods: Suspect usually take the money, or both money and food. Rarely do they just take the food.

Method: Suspects order food by telephone and rob delivery person

Motive: Quick cash, sometimes related to gang activity

Query Terms: pizza, food, delivery, Chinese, restaurant, lure , order, driveway, alley, porch, hallway, vacant

Suggestions: Map all your restaurants and pizzerias – differentiate between types of restaurants. Keep track of all food delivery robberies. Keep track of all individuals arrested for such robberies and their MOs for future reference. Some robbers wear masks, hide behind bushes, act in groups. Look for serial crimes whenever you have an “outbreak” of such crimes. Look for repeat targeting of particular pizzerias/restaurants. Work on target-hardening suggestions.

Resources:

ROBBERY PREVENTION TIPS FOR FOOD DELIVERY DRIVERS

Safety Tips For Food Delivery Drivers And Their Employers

Crime Pattern ID: Drugged/Intoxicated Victims

Pattern: Drugged or Intoxicated Victims – or Both

Victims: Young women at bars may be drugged by unknown persons who later sexually assault them. Intoxicated people are robbed more easily because of their condition – reduced ability to see crime coming and defend themselves. Intoxicated persons are victims of assault in bars (as well as being perpetrators).

Perpetrators: Sometimes serial, predatory males. Sometimes crimes of opportunity.

Locations: Most often in bars or around them, such as bar parking lots.

Times: Most often late in the evening, near bar closing times.

Approach Methods: Sometimes females in bars are approached by someone who tries to charm them before drugging them. Some victims are drugged at parties (such as raves.

Weapons: Intoxicated victims are sometimes beaten severely due to the fact the ability to defend oneself is reduced when drunk.

Vehicles/Transportation Routes: Victims may be transported to apartments, vacant buildings or hotels and raped or otherwise molested. Often victims can’t remember what happened to them.

Stolen Goods: Wallets often stolen in robberies, sometimes carjackings occur related to victim intoxication.

Method: Date rape drugs such as GHB, rohypnol, and ketamine.

Motive: The suspect’s motives are control and power most often with a sexual component, in robberies quick cash is motive, in bar fights revenge over perceived slight may be motive.

Query terms that may help you search for crime incidents: bar, tavern, loss of memory, bouncer, hotel, motel, drunk, drugged, drink, vacant, remember, loss of consciousness, brawl, names of date rape drugs

Suggestions: Map all your bars/taverns and track the types of calls/crimes that occur at them, look for hot spots of activity, keep files on all incidents of drugged victims even if sexual assault has not occurred, note bars were assault levels are high and determine what factors are involved through problem analysis

Some Resources:

Wikipedia: Date Rape

NIJ Journal Article: Drug-Facilitated Rape

POP Guide: Analyzing Repeat Victimization

The Drug Enforcement Agency's Use of Intelligence Analysts

THE DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION’S USE OF INTELLIGENCE ANALYSTS U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Audit Division Audit Report 08-23 May 2008

This is an extremely interesting audit report for those interested in the development of crime and intelligence analysis. The level of detail helps the reader understand the role of the analyst in greater depth than most publications.

An excerpt:
"In our survey, we asked Special Agents if the current number of intelligence analysts was adequate to provide for Special Agents’ research and analytical needs. Eighty percent responded that the current number of intelligence analysts was not adequate, and 87 percent responded that the current ratio of 10 Special Agents for every intelligence analyst should be lower."

Teens arrested on racketeering charges

This article highlights one way crime analysis "works." Very interesting!

DHS Under Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis Charles E. Allen Address to the Washington Institute for Near East Policy

See link for press release.

Welcome

Welcome to my new AMU students! Note that while I will not be teaching after this next 8 week session (I want to focus on other things), I am happy to be able to help you learn more about crime and intelligence analysis. Please use this blog to add to your learning experience and for research for assigned projects/topics.

Terrorism Analyst: Web Q&A Risky for Al-Qaida

"A senior leader of al-Qaida is trying to connect with the people. Several months ago, Ayman al-Zawahiri invited his followers to ask him questions on the Internet. He recently posted his responses.

Steve Inskeep talks to Brian Fishman, an analyst at West Point's Combating Terrorism Center, about what we can learn from the exchange."

Guidance on the National Intelligence Model 2005

Guidance on the National Intelligence Model 2005 is from the UK but can be adapted by those seeking to develop standards for an intelligence-led policing approach.

A brief excerpt:

"4.8 KEY FUNCTION – ANALYSIS
Information analysed from a number of different sources can provide an informed, intelligent picture of policing issues. In order to produce quality intelligence products, forces must appoint sufficient numbers of trained analysts at every level of policing. Each force should consider minimum staffing levels based on its own individual crime and incident profile. Analysts must be given dedicated time to undertake quality analysis and should not be side-tracked into performing basic information management tasks."

Police war on gangs

The central analysis unit of the police in the Australian state of Victoria will be doing an in-depth study of their gang problem, according to this article.

Toronto police struggle with GIS’ success

This article highlights the reality that getting mapping instituted and streamlined is not that easy in a police agency. In Toronto, most analysts are sworn officers. That may also be an issue in this particular story since officers in general rotate jobs and becoming a good analysts takes years and commitment to the position.

Forensic Databases: Paint, Shoe Prints, and Beyond

Forensic Databases: Paint, Shoe Prints, and Beyond, an article in the National Institute of Justice Journal No. 258 • October 2007, by Robin Bowen and Jessica Schneider, is an interesting and relevant source of information on forensic resources, some of which you may not know exist.