The high-value, low-risk nature of wildlife crime attracts individual criminals, organised and disorganised crime groups, as well as unscrupulous businesses operating in legal industries. These groups interact in a variety of ways across the illegal supply chain, loosely linking licit and illicit wildlife trade networks to collect, transport and sell wildlife (FATF, 2020; van Uhm 2018a ).

The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) defines transnational organised crime in terms of organised criminal groups that are:

“a structured group of three or more persons, existing for a period of time and acting in concert with the aim of committing one or more serious crimes or offences established in accordance with this Convention, in order to obtain, directly or indirectly, a financial or other material benefit.”

Crimes become transnational when:

• their activities take place in more than one country;
• they are planned in one country and executed in another;
• they involve an organised crime group that engages in activities in more than one state; or
• the effects are felt in more than one state.

As wildlife resource simultaneously become more scarce, popular and expensive, the illegal trade is expected to attract even more transnational organised crime groups (Wyatt et al, 2020). Research indicates that organised crime networks engaged in IWT, like those focused on other profit-making ventures such as drugs or human trafficking, are fluid, flexible and able to withstand the arrest of even the key players (Costa, 2021).

This has two consequences.

First, the efforts of law enforcement alone – particularly when working within national borders – are not sufficient to tackle organised crime.

Second, criminal groups operate much like other multinational companies, using the services of legitimate commercial transport, finance and other firms to carry out their illicit business. A more holistic, concerted approach involving the private sector is therefore essential.