Re-conceptualising Organised Crime

This commentary aims to broaden the current approach to understanding organised crime. The orthodox method has been to conceptualise organised crime as a rather specific and isolated criminal entity. This mindset encourages certain assumptions and policy recommendations that are problematic. To overcome these shortfalls, this commentary suggests a broader perspective based on the notion of a ‘criminal economy’. To illustrate how this perspective may lead to new views of organised crime, this commentary will sketch a case study based on research into the criminal economy that exists on the Cape Flats.