Criminals adapted to extremes of lockdown
ABIRMINGHAM criminologist says the Covid-19 pandemic has caused people to act in a “more extreme way” following violent murders in lockdown. Professor David Wilson, of Birmingham City University, said a number of serious crimes were committed due to an “extraordinary situation in which people were living their lives”.
He also said criminals adapted to their new surroundings to capitalise on others’ misfortune by using the crisis ‘‘as an opportunity” to offend. He said the impersonation of key workers, fake testing kits and apparent cures for Covid-19 were a set of new crimes adapted during the lockdown.
The 63-year-old academic said: “There did seem to be more extraordinary murders. A family annihilation in Sussex and the Phoenix Netts murder.
“People behaved in extreme way.
“Normal values had been suspended because there was an extraordinary situation in which people were living their lives.”
a
more
He also said criminals were quick to seize a chance to leave their mark on the pandemic with a series of new crimes.
“It was more interesting as a criminologist to watch how crime had adapted in lockdown. For example, we had drug dealers impersonating key workers,” he said.
“Suddenly there was a new market in NHS IDs. Those sorts of things were being adapted to suit the circumstances which existed. It’s an opportunity. Criminals see a crisis as an opportunity.
“Crime, like capitalism, adapts and evolves to exploit the circumstances in which it finds itself in. Some crimes increased while other completely disappeared. Domestic burglary disappeared, while other crimes were brand new.
“People were selling so-called ‘cures’ for coronavirus, while other crimes increased dramatically, including domestic violence.
“The murder rate also remained stable. One of the biggest drivers of murders is young men fighting other young men in pubs and clubs, but they couldn’t do that in lockdown.
“The other driver of the murder rate is domestic violence.”
He also said gang violence existed as the distribution of drugs became a “source of competition and tension between rival gangs”. “There was a lot of young male on young male violence during the lockdown as they were competing for a much reduced source of their drugs as ports and airports were closed,” he said.
“They were fighting in relation of the distribution of drugs once they had gained control of them.
“The murder rate and violence rate has remained pretty stable.”
Professor Wilson, who regularly appears on television documentaries, expects the lockdown easing will mean people going back to their everyday behaviours prior to Covid-19, including criminals.
Crime, like capitalism, adapts and evolves to exploit the circumstances Professor David Wilson