Black Societies

Placeholder for Olvanan criminal organziation. Page to be generated.

While the level of crime is high in Belesia, mainly due to socioeconomic conditions, organic Belesian criminal activity is mostly conducted by disorganized street gangs. However, the frequent disruptions in government and traditionally weak policing have allowed criminal organizations from Torbia and Olvana to take hold. These organizations have rapidly been consolidating large swaths of land. In many cases, the Tantoco Cartel and the Olvanan Black Societies have tacit agreements to leave control of any given island to one group or another. However, in other areas, most notably the urban environs of Mindanao, there have been inevitable flare-ups of violence between the two, generally using locally recruited thugs.

The shadow economy of Belesia is one of the largest in the world, with a value equivalent to over 40% of GDP. This includes both market-based legal production of goods and services deliberately concealed from public authorities to avoid payment of taxes or meeting labor market standards and classic crime activities, like burglary, robbery, or drug dealing. The numbers of drug seizures in Belesia are few and decreasing, but human trafficking is very high, predominantly as labor.

Corruption in Belesia is high and the enforcement of anti-corruption laws is inconsistent and slow. The public sector is a key source of bribery, with national and local government units likely to ask for bribes related to public contracts. Government infrastructure projects are rife with bid rigging, collusion, and fraud. Corruption is also a high risk in the Bureau of Customs, where there are reports of officials regularly demanding facilitation payments for imports and exports. Trade-related fraud is probably the biggest criminal activity facing Belesia. A fourth of all goods imported into Belesia go unreported to avoid VAT taxes and import tariffs. In the last decade, illicit capital flows have drained an average of $1.5 billion in tax revenue each year. In addition, money laundering is prevalent in Belesia. Most of this money laundering is facilitated through fake trade invoicing, which allows exporters and importers another avenue to avoid paying taxes on traded goods.

Petty and organized crime is a serious problem in Belesia and is generally economically motivated because of the high levels of extreme poverty among the population. Reports of mugging, homicide, other violent crimes, as well as confidence tricks, pick pocketing, and credit card fraud are common. Organized crime networks are well entrenched, encompassing kidnapping, extortion, gambling, and heavy involvement in the country's narcotics trade and money laundering. Marijuana and hashish are cultivated locally for export, with increasing production of methamphetamines as well.

Belesia’s crime rate is considered high. Incidences of theft, armed robbery, and assault are quite prevalent in the nation. The frequent disruptions in government and traditionally weak policing has allowed organized crime gangs to relocate from other areas of Asia in recent years, thus helping to increase the overall crime rate in the region.