CRIME INC...
Revealed: Scotland’s criminal gangs are being handed public sector contracts – and are siphoning off MILLIONS from the government, local councils... and the NHS
SCOTLAND’S criminal gangs are being handed millions of pounds in taxpayer cash to work for public sector bodies, including the NHS and local councils.
A Scottish Government quango has admitted there is a ‘clear and evolving problem’ with Serious Organised Crime Groups (SOCGs) being handed lucrative public sector contracts, sparking fears that criminal syndicates are increasingly ‘running Scotland’.
Police believe there are 96 gangs operating across the country, employing around 2,000 henchmen to run their empires, which often involve drug and human trafficking rackets.
Yet, shockingly, around 70 of the country’s gangs also have seemingly legitimate businesses that bring in extra cash – and serve as a front for money laundering.
Last night, experts said the groups pose as ‘respectable businesses’, offering services in areas such as construction, waste removal and security to Scotland’s public bodies.
The contracts, which are often worth tens of thousands of pounds each, allow them to funnel cash into the criminal underworld or uphold their facades as influential, highflying businesses.
Now, the Scottish Government’s Serious Organised Crime Taskforce (SOCT) has launched a probe to uncover the true scale of the problem of criminals being awarded public contracts.
It is also developing training manuals for public sector bodies to help them spot criminal gangs before agreeing to a deal.
A new report submitted to the criminal justice committee at Holyrood states: ‘The group concluded that there was a clear and
‘Various levels of people will become corrupted’
evolving problem with SOCG involvement in public sector contracts.
‘A range of action is ongoing, including analysis to determine the current scale of the problem, development of resources and training materials for public sector bodies, and exploring the requirement for legislative change.’
Unlike the perception of gangs as violent thugs, Scotland’s groups tend to be well-organised corporations with their own chairmen and accountants.
Their illicit trades can be both domestic and international, with some kingpin figures known throughout the world for their power and influence.
The majority of them deal in drugs – with heroin the most popular, followed by cocaine, cannabis, amphetamine and tranquillisers.
A progress report published last year by the SOCT highlighted the stranglehold that the gangs have on public life in Scotland.
It said 72 per cent of SOCGs were located in the West of Scotland, 18 per cent in the East and 10 per cent in the North.
The report also highlighted the criminal links to apparently genuine firms.
It stated: ‘72 per cent of SOCGs are involved in the use of seemingly legitimate businesses.
‘The most common business types are licensed premises, taxis, restaurants, shops, garage repairs and vehicle maintenance, as well as property development.’
Last night, Graeme Pearson, former director general of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement
Agency, told how mob bosses were able to ‘inveigle’ their way into winning lucrative contracts from public sector bodies.
He said: ‘These colourful business types will become engaged in all sorts of public events, they’ll host dinners or tables at charity events, and they’ll invite officials and others to be guests at their tables.
‘Having become involved in that element of social activity, they then inveigle themselves into the lives of otherwise fairly respectable people, undermine their confidence and then take them over, in a way like in [TV shows] The Wire and The Sopranos. These guys can look at first sight to be just legitimate businessmen but once you become involved with them you’re invited into circumstances that you’re not very comfortable with.
‘Then, when contracts come up, it’s difficult for these people to resist the approach.’
Mr Pearson added: ‘It’s a form of corruption.
‘You’ll find that various levels of people involved in public companies or public authorities will become corrupted to the extent that they’re no longer able to resist the approaches from these figures. It then becomes virtually a licence for gangs to print money, but equally it’s a way of them becoming more widely involved in other elements of public life.’ Mr Pearson said that gangs can make a huge amount of money out of the NHS and councils for carrying out ‘unattractive’ jobs.
However, if they do not get what they want, they can resort to violence, including murder and assault. In 2019, six ‘Lyons mob’ thugs were jailed for 104 years for a gangland murder bid on a rival.
The attempt was one of five in a matter of months in 2017, carried out on rival gang members.
In an effort to crack down on gangs, the Scottish Government launched the SOCT, which has four key aims – to divert people from becoming involved in crime, deter serious and organised crime groups, to detect those involved and disrupt their activities.
The warning about public sector
‘They operate like The Wire or The Sopranos’
contracts comes from its ‘short life’ [temporary] working group, which had representatives from the Information Commissioner’s Office and a number of SOCT members, including Police Scotland, the Crown Office, the NHS and North Lanarkshire Council.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘Working with our partners on the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce, the Scottish Government is fully committed to tackling serious organised crime and reducing the harm that it causes to our communities.
‘A range of action is ongoing, including analysis to determine the current scale of the problem, development of resources and training materials for public sector bodies, and exploring the requirement for legislative change.’
Last night, Assistant Chief Constable Pat Campbell of Police Scotland said: ‘Working with our partners, including the members of the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce, to tackle serious and organised criminality and make Scotland a hostile country for these groups to carry out their activities, is a priority for Police Scotland.
‘We are acutely aware that criminals will seek to exploit any situation for their own gain, which will include using seemingly legitimate companies as a front.’