We delve into the underworld and uncover the secretive operations of the world’s five richest mafias. Beyond the flash and glamour of respectable money exists a murky domain where organized crime reigns supreme.
From the busy streets of New York to the sun-drenched beaches of Italy, these criminal syndicates accumulate incredible wealth through illegal activities. With a network of influence that spans countries, these mafias manage massive businesses and wield enormous power behind closed doors.
Join us on a voyage into the shadowy realm of the five richest criminal organizations, where money flows freely and loyalty is purchased with blood.
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1. Sinaloa Cartel
- Background: Founded in 1980s in Sinaloa, Mexico
- Wealth: $3 billion revenue
- Income sources: Drug trafficking
Mexico has many drug cartels, but Sinaloa is the biggest. The Sinaloa cartel connects American drug buyers to South American drug manufacturers. Mexican cartels filter $6.5 billion in drugs annually, and the Sinaloa gang controls 60% of that market, taking in $3 billion.
Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel is located in Culiacán. The Guadalajara cartel began as one of Mexico’s greatest crime organizations in the early 1980s and split into other gangs later. These factions included the Sinaloa cartel, which grew stronger over time. Joaquín Guzmán Loera, nicknamed as El Chapo (“Shorty”), established smuggling methods that empowered the Sinaloa cartel. Guzmán introduced tunnel smuggling into the U.S. Guzmán took over the cartel in prison in the 1990s and escaped in 2001.
To become one of Mexico’s most powerful cartels, the Sinaloa cartel fought turf conflicts with the Tijuana and Juárez cartels. The cartel operated in 50 nations, mostly in the US, in the 2000s. This cartel is responsible for most illegal drugs entering the US from Mexico. In contrast to other cartels, the Sinaloa cartel relies heavily on drug sales.
Guzmán was arrested in 2014 and escaped through a tunnel in 2015. He was arrested again in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, and extradited to the US the following year. Fentanyl distribution by the Sinaloa cartel has exacerbated the US drug crisis. Though regularly targeted by Mexican law enforcement, Sinaloa is a strong organization that controls much of the US drug trade.
2. Solntsevskaya Bratva
- Background: Founded in the 1980s in the former Soviet Union, in Solntsevo District in Moscow
- Wealth: $8.5 billion revenue
- Income sources: Primarily drug trade and human trafficking, but also car theft, extortion, stolen art, contract killings, money laundering, arms dealing, trading nuclear material, oil deals, and prostitution.
The extremely decentralized Solntsevskaya Bratva has 10 battalions that act independently. These ten groups pool money, which is administered by a 12-person council that meets in various locations to make financial choices. Solntsevskaya Bratva claims 9,000 members. Human trafficking and heroin trafficking fund the gang. Russia uses 12% of the world’s heroin while having 0.5% of the population.
Sergei Mikhailov, a former waiter who resorted to crime, founded Solntsevskaya Bratva. He was caught in 1984 and spent six months in the Gulag, where he built a criminal network and became a thief. After prison, Mikhailov founded an organized criminal ring in Moscow’s working-class Solntsevo District, home to several gangs.
Despite numerous gang warfare, the Solntsevskaya Bratva always won. Allies of Solntsevskaya Bratva and other gangs were expelled. By the 1990s, the Solntsevskaya Bratva had grown strong enough to construct legitimate firms to cover its criminal activities, and it spread abroad. Mikhailov, the group’s creator, prefers to be seen as a businessman.
The gang operates several legal enterprises as a front for its activities. Solntsevskaya Bratva operates in Russia, the Caribbean, Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, and China. Solntsevskaya Bratva gets heroin from Afghanistan.
3. Yamaguchi Gumi
- Background: Founded in 1916, in Kobe, Japan
- Wealth: $6.6 billion revenue
- Income sources: Drug trafficking, gambling, extortion, and “dispute resolution”. Other income sources include labor racketeering, extortion, gambling, loansharking, prostitution and smuggling
World’s largest Yakuza organization is Rokudaime Yamaguchi-gumi. In 2014, the Yamaguchi-gumi had 23400 members, about half of Japan’s Yakuza. Yamaguchi-Gumi was created in 1916 by Kobe fishermen, although it had various leaders until it became what it is today. After World War II, the organization collapsed, but Kazuo regenerated, enlarged, and extended it into all of its current income streams.
The group is against drug use and sale, and several prior leaders have refused to let it profit from drug trafficking. Older members avoided violent crime. In the past, Yamaguchi-gumi followed an ethical code. However, Tadamasa Goto, the group’s 4th leader, allowed violence and civilian abuse.
Yamaguchi-gumi, started in Kobe, now operates in Tokyo. However, Yamaguchi-gumi’s growth to other parts of Japan has sometimes turned murderous, killing top leaders.
The Japanese government calls the Yamaguchi-gumi a “boryokudan”—a criminal organization. The Yamaguchi-gumi are on watch lists, can’t rent flats, and are otherwise barred from Japanese society. The Yakuza in Japan is government-regulated and semi-legal, unlike other organized criminals. The Yamaguchi-Gumi have business branding, rigid standards, and community-giving initiatives.
4. Camorra
- Background: Founded in the 1900s as a prison gang in Naples, Italy
- Wealth: Revenue: $4.9 billion revenue
- Income sources: Firearms trafficking, sexual exploitation, drugs, counterfeiting, usury, extortion and gambling
Camorra is Italy’s most successful organized crime group. Camorra began as a prison gang in Naples in the 19th century. While organizing Italy’s impoverished during the late 1800s political upheavals, Camorra rose to power. Nearly 100 clans, 10,000 immediate allies, and a considerably bigger network of clients and dependents make up the Camorra.
As part of its public outreach, the Camorra lends money, fights street crime, and provides protection. The Camorra was deeply ingrained in the municipal government and army from the start. After Italy’s unification and multiple manhunts for Camorra members, the gang lost ground in the late 1800s. The Camorra was weak in the early 1900s and lost all its candidates in the 1901 Neapolitan election.
In 1911, three Camorristi were tried for a notorious murder. Many Camorra fled to the US when their sentences were carried out. The US Camorra feuded with the American mafia before being assimilated.
The Camorra survived in Italy and rose to power in Naples in recent decades. The Camorra is a well-established organized crime syndicate that earns $4.9 billion annually.
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5. Ndrangheta
- Background: Founded in the 18th century in Calabria, Italy
- Wealth: $4.5 billion revenue
- Income sources: Drug trafficking, extortion, money laundering, and rigging public contracts.
After the Sicilian mafia’s intense prosecution, the ‘Ndrangheta, one of Italy’s oldest criminal groups, became one of the world’s richest mafias. Calabria’s ‘Ndrangheta was formed in the 18th century. Second-largest Italian mafia by revenue is Ndrangheta.
Like the Camorra, ‘Ndrangheta launders money extorts, and rigs public contracts. Controlling the European drug traffic is the ‘Ndrangheta’s main revenue source. In the 1980s, ‘Ndrangheta controlled much of the cocaine entering Europe from South America, and recently they controlled up to 80% of that trade. The organization has also made a lot of money via arms trafficking.
Europol says ‘Ndrangheta invests their considerable revenues in failing local firms. The group includes networks across Europe, Latin America, the US, Australia, and Canada. Around 3% of Italy’s GDP is controlled by the mafia organization. Due to its global status, ‘Ndrangheta has been targeted by law police in Brooklyn, Brazil, and Lebanon. The ‘Ndrangheta has supported crime families in various cities, including the Gambino family in New York.
Italian authorities convicted around 200 ‘Ndrangheta members in a huge trial. A large bunker was created for the trial. The Calabrian mafia was cracked down for years before this trial. Reading the study results aloud took about 2 hours. ‘Ndrangheta has spread to several places outside Italy, drawing international attention to the trials.