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=__//** Organized Crime and Gang Projects **//__=

__** Organized Crimes **__

 * // is a transitional grouping of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. ( Money profits). //
 * // The Organized Crime Control Act (1970) defines organized crime as "The unlawful activities of a highly organized, disciplined association Such crime is commonly referred to as the work of the Mob in the U.S." //
 * // Mafia is a term used to describe a number of criminal organizations around the world. The first organization to bear the label was the Sicillian based in Sicily, known to its members as Cosa Nostra. In the United States, "the Mafia" generally refers to the Italian American Mafia. //
 * // Other powerful organizations described as mafias include the Russian Mafia, the Irish Mob, the Chinese Triads, the Albanian Mafias, Bosnian mafias, the Japanese Yakuza, the Neapolitan Camorra, the Calabrian 'Ndrangheta, the Apulian Sacra Corona Unita, the Indian Mafia, the Unione Corse, Serbian Mafia, the Mexican Mafia and the Bulgarian mafia. //
 * // There are also a number of localized mafia organizations around the world bearing no link to any specific ethnic background. //
 * // Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are politically motivated (see VNSA). Gangs may become "disciplined" enough to be considered "organized". An organized gang or criminal set can also be referred to as a mob. The act of engaging in criminal activity as a structured group is referred to in the United States as racketeering //

__** The Gambino Crime Family **__

 * // The Gambino crime family is one of the "Five Families" that control organized crime activity in New York City. It is a part of the United States-wide criminal network known as the Mafia (or Cosa Nostra). The group is named after Carlo Gambino, boss of the family at the time of the McClellan hearings in 1963 when the structure of organized crime first gained public attention. //
 * // The group's operations extend from New York and the eastern seaboard to California. Its illicit activities include labor and construction racketeering, gambling, loansharking, extortion, drug trafficking, money laundering, prostitution,[3] murder for hire, solid and toxic waste dumping violations, construction, building and cement violations, fraud and wire fraud, hijacking, pier thefts and fencing. //
 * // The rise of what for a time was the most powerful crime family in America began in 1957, the day Albert Anastasia was assassinated while sitting in a barber chair at the Park-Sheraton Hotel in Manhattan. Experts believe Carlo Gambino helped orchestrate the hit to take over the family. Gambino partnered with Meyer Lansky to control gambling interests in Cuba. //
 * // The family’s fortunes grew through 1976, when Gambino appointed his brother-in-law, Paul Castellano, as boss. Castellano infuriated upstart capo John Gotti, who orchestrated Castellano's murder in 1985. Gotti's downfall came in 1992, when his underboss Sammy Gravano decided to cooperate with the FBI. //
 * Gravano's cooperation brought down Gotti, along with most of the top members of the Gambino family. The family is believed to be currently run by street boss John "Jackie" D'Amico.

__** THE BLOODS **__
// The Bloods are a street gang founded in Los Angeles, California. The gang is widely known for its rivalry with the Crips. They are identified by the red color worn by their members and by particular gang symbols, including distinctive hand signs. The Bloods are made up of various sub-groups known as "sets" between which significant differences exist such as colors, clothing, and operations, and political ideas which may be in open conflict with each other. Since their creation, the Blood gangs have branched out throughout the United States. Bloods have been documented in the US military, found in both US and overseas bases. The Bloods gang was formed initially to compete against the influence of the Crips in Los Angeles. The origin of the Bloods and their rivalry with the Crips dates to the 1970s, where the Pirus street gang, originally a set, or faction, of the Crips, broke off during an internal gang war, and allied with other smaller gangs to found the gang that would eventually become known as the Bloods. At the time, Crips sets outnumbered Bloods sets by three to one. To assert their power despite this difference in numbers, Bloods sets became increasingly violent, especially against rival Crips members. The Pirus are therefore considered to be the original founders of the Bloods. During the rise of crack cocaine, the gang's focus shifted to drug production. Bloods sets operate independently of each other, and are currently located in almost all States. Blood sets on the East Coast are often seen as affiliated with the United Blood Nation, a gang which originated in Rikers Island. // // The United Blood Nation, simply called the Bloods, formed in 1993, within the New York City jail system on Rikers Island's GMDC (George Mochen Detention Center), sometimes called C 73. GMDC was used to segregate problem inmates from the rest of the detention center. Prior to this time period, the Latin Kings were the most prevalent and organized gang in the NYC jail system. The Latin Kings, with mostly Hispanic members, were targeting African American inmates with violence. These African American inmates, organized by some of the more violent and charismatic inmates, formed a protection group which they called the United Blood Nation. This United Blood Nation, which was actually a prison gang, was emulating the Bloods street gangs in Los Angeles, California. Several of the leaders of this recently created prison gang formed eight original Blood sets to recruit in their neighborhoods across New York City. By 1996, thousands of members of the Blood street gang were establishing themselves as a formidable force among gangs and continued a steady drive for recruitment. At this time, the Bloods were more violent than other gangs but much less organized. Numerous slashings (razor blade or knife attacks) were reported during robberies and discovered to be initiations into the Bloods. This Blood in ritual became the trademark for the Bloods. Bloods recruited throughout the East Coast. // = The Yakuza =

Yakuza in katakana // Despite uncertainty about the single origin of Yakuza organizations, most modern Yakuza derive from two classifications which emerged in the mid-Edo Period: tekiya, those who primarily peddled illicit, stolen or shoddy goods; and bakuto, those who were involved in or participated in gambling. // // Tekiya (peddlers) were considered one of the lowest social groups in Edo. As they began to form organizations of their own, they took over some administrative duties relating to commerce, such as stall allocation and protection of their commercial activities. During Shinto festivals, these peddlers opened stalls and some members were hired to act as security. Each peddler paid rent in exchange for a stall assignment and protection during the fair. // // The Edo government eventually formally recognized such tekiya organizations and granted the oyabun (servants) of tekiya a surname as well as permission to carry a sword. This was a major step forward for the traders, as formerly only samurai and noblemen were allowed to carry swords. // // Bakuto (gamblers) had a much lower social standing even than traders, as gambling was illegal. Many small gambling houses cropped up in abandoned temples or shrines at the edge of towns and villages all over Japan. Most of these gambling houses ran loan sharking businesses for clients, and they usually maintained their own security personnel. // // The places themselves, as well as the bakuto, were regarded with disdain by society at large, and much of the undesirable image of the Yakuza originates from bakuto; this includes the name yakuza itself (ya-ku-za, or 8-9-3, is a losing hand in Oicho-Kabu, a form of blackjack). // // Because of the economic situation during the mid-period and the predominance of the merchant class, developing Yakuza groups were composed of misfits and delinquents that had joined or formed Yakuza groups to extort customers in local markets by selling fake or shoddy goods. // // The roots of the Yakuza can still be seen today in initation ceremonies, which incorporate tekiya or bakuto rituals. Although the modern Yakuza has diversified, some gangs still identify with one group or the other; for example, a gang whose primary source of income is illegal gambling may refer to themselves as bakuto. //