£40billion ($80bn) Crime Ring Operating from Inside British Prisons

In a setup reminiscent of 60’s flick ‘The Italian Job’ it has today been revealed that the criminal masterminds of the UK underworld are running their collective £40billion empire from behind bars.

After an extensive investigation British Police have identified at least 27 already convicted crime lords who are successfully continuing to amass their fortunes and coordinate criminal activity from inside their prison cells.

However, despite a separate investigation identifying over 1,000 active criminal organisations operating in the UK, gone are the days of petty inter-gang rivalry; now it’s all about the big business.

An intelligence map, compiled by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) with the assistance of 43 police forces across England and Wales, has revealed that gangs are now compiling their resources and sharing their skills in order to maximise their profit.

"British gangs are quite unlike the Italian Mafia model or the Turkish groups," he said. "There are no set ranks, rules and structures. They are more fluid, flexible and opportunist." "They often form loose, amorphous coalitions - coming together for a particular venture, perhaps one group needs a skill which another specialises in." commented ACPO Deputy Chief Constable Jon Murphy. Continuing: "Significant criminal activity is being driven from within prisons,"

In addition, today’s criminals are augmenting their earning potential by diversifying their interests; taking advantage of the 11,000 miles of British coastline to smuggle drugs, counterfeit goods and operate sex trafficking networks below the customs radar.

"Some 60 per cent of criminal groups are involved in drug trafficking, but many are multi-commodity organisations," Mr Murphy said. "If they can traffic drugs they can also smuggle counterfeit goods."

What’s more, while the media has frequently reported an influx of Eastern European and South East Asian gangs operating on British soil, the intelligence map revealed that home grown criminals still hold the reigns. Over 15,000 individuals were identified as being involved in a crime ring with 170 gangs operating in London alone.