Organized Crime and Criminal Network Analysis

Criminal activity involving a structured or coordinated group engaged in offenses for financial, material, or other unlawful benefit.

To identify the offenses, participants, roles, criminal relationships, resources, and admissible evidence establishing individual responsibility.

A set of individuals or entities connected through relationships or activities relevant to suspected criminal conduct.

The systematic examination of relationships among persons, organizations, transactions, locations, and events to identify relevant patterns.

An analytical method that displays and evaluates documented associations among people, places, objects, communications, or events.

An entity such as a person, organization, account, vehicle, telephone number, or location.

A relationship or connection between two nodes, such as a communication, transaction, or documented association.

A connection showing a specified direction of activity, such as a payment sent from one account to another.

A connection representing an association without asserting a particular direction.

A measure of how many direct connections a node has within a defined network.

A measure of how frequently a node lies along shortest paths connecting other nodes in a network.

A node or connection linking groups that otherwise have relatively limited connections.

No. Centrality reflects the documented network structure and must be interpreted with reliable contextual evidence.

A table used to record and compare known or suspected relationships among individuals or entities.

A table organizing persons, incidents, dates, places, and activities to identify patterns or investigative gaps.

The examination of when relevant events, communications, transactions, or movements occurred and how they relate.

The examination of spatial patterns in offenses and associated activities to develop investigative understanding.

A testable explanation of how suspected participants, roles, and activities may be connected within an unlawful operation.

Legitimate social, family, commercial, or professional relationships may resemble criminal associations.

A decision-making approach using evaluated intelligence and analysis to prioritize and guide policing activities.

Raw information has not necessarily been assessed; evaluated intelligence has undergone analysis and assessment of source reliability and content credibility.

An evaluation of a source's history, access, competence, consistency, and possible motives.

An evaluation of whether a particular claim is plausible, internally consistent, and supported by independent evidence.

A generally reliable source may provide inaccurate information, while a previously unknown source may provide a verifiable fact.

The confirmation or strengthening of a claim through independent information or evidence.

A situation in which the same original claim is repeated through multiple channels and mistakenly treated as independent corroboration.

It can create false confidence in an allegation without adding genuinely independent supporting evidence.

Important information needed to evaluate a hypothesis or decision that has not yet been reliably established.

A clearly defined question or information need that guides lawful collection and analytical efforts.

Information suggesting a potentially useful direction for further lawful inquiry without necessarily constituting proof.

The mistaken conclusion that a person is criminally responsible merely because they are connected to a suspected offender.

An agreement and decision by two or more persons concerning the commission of a felony, with criminal liability determined under applicable law.

No. Conspiracy requires proof of the legally relevant agreement and decision or concerted criminal purpose.

Yes. Courts may infer conspiracy from sufficiently proven acts demonstrating a common criminal design, rather than from mere association.

Conspiracy involves participation in a common criminal design; presence alone does not establish such participation.

It helps determine each person's conduct, knowledge, participation, and possible legal liability.

A person or entity providing services, resources, or assistance relevant to an offense, whose liability depends on the established facts and applicable law.

To identify potentially relevant coordination, timing, relationships, and events requiring independent verification.

Connection metadata may establish contact or timing without revealing what was communicated.

To identify possible common funding, payments, proceeds, or operational relationships requiring corroboration.

An investigation conducted alongside another inquiry, often focusing on a related offense, financial activity, or participant.

An inquiry in which two or more authorized agencies coordinate their investigative activities toward shared objectives.

The process of identifying and resolving overlapping investigative activities to reduce interference, duplication, and safety risks.

To define lawful access, confidentiality, responsibilities, data handling, and permitted uses of shared information.

To preserve provenance, evaluate reliability, identify restrictions, and support later verification.

Intelligence guides decisions and inquiries; courtroom evidence must satisfy applicable rules of relevance, authenticity, admissibility, and proof.

No. Investigators must establish who used the number, the nature of the communications, and reliable evidence of criminal participation.

Only one original source is established unless genuinely independent corroboration is identified.

Deconfliction through authorized channels to prevent conflicting activities, protect personnel, and preserve investigative integrity.

No. Investigators must establish relevant knowledge, conduct, intent, and the elements of any alleged offense.

Treat the finding as an analytical lead, test alternative explanations, and seek independent admissible evidence before alleging criminal responsibility.