Russian Mafia In America: Immigration, Culture, and Crime [Paperback]

James O. Finckenauer (Author), Elin J. Waring (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 2001

Does a "Russian Mafia" really exist? This book seeks to answer that question by examining the intricate history of Russian organized crime in both its homeland and the United States. It investigates in detail such topics as the characteristics of the Russian criminal tradition of Vory v Zakone ("thieves professing the code"), contemporary Russian mobs, criminal activity among Russian immigrants, claims of KGB involvement in American crime, and connections between crime bosses and gangsters in both countries.

Drawing on research conducted in cooperation with the Tri-State Joint Soviet emigre Organized Crime Project as well as on privileged access to confidential information, James O. Finckenauer and Elin J. Waring particularly focus on criminal networks in the New York-New Jersey-Pennsylvania area. They also report on a nationwide survey of law enforcement agencies and examine major criminal cases, notably Russian participation with Cosa Nostra families in bootleg gasoline schemes.

The Russian Mafia in America is the first in-depth study on Russian organized crime since the break-up of the Soviet Union and the arrival of the latest wave of immigrants to the United States. It is an eye-opening expose of major players in America's underworld and a significant contribution to the literature on organized crime.

James O. Finckenauer is Director of the International Center at the National Institute of Justice. He is the author of Russian Youth and Organized Crime in America. He lives in Washington, D.C. Elin J. Waring is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the Herbert H. Lehman College, City University of New York. She is the co-author of Crimes of the Middle Classes: White Collar Offenders in the Federal Courts. She lives in New York City.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In recent years, journalists have increasingly used the term "Russian mafia" to discuss crime committed by Soviet emigres in the U.S. In this straightforward, if dry, book, Finckenauer (director of the International Center, National Institute of Justice, and author of Russian Youth and Organized Crime in America) and Waring (a sociologist and author of Crimes of the Middle Classes) argue that there is no Russian mafia in the U.S., but only a network of criminals who work together when it behooves them. The authors rely on the Tri-State Joint Soviet-emigre Organized Crime Project covering New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania; on major criminal cases that involved former residents of the U.S.S.R. and members of the Italian mafia; and on interviews with Russian immigrants themselves. Along the way, they make some illuminating points, particularly about the conditions that create the rise of organized crime, the importance of honor in criminal networks and the ways in which the media and mainstream society often view the criminal activity of immigrant groups as more violent and organized than it actually is. But if the authors' distinction between a mafia and the loose crime network that they say better describes Russian emigre crime is important, one would expect it to have significant ramifications for methods of law enforcement, none of which are discussed here.

Copyright 1998 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Since the mid 1980s, the media have been reporting the involvement of recent immigrants from the Soviet Union in drugs, prostitution, and other organized crime, leading some journalists and investigators to speak of a Russian Mafia. Finckenauer (Russian Youth, Transaction, 1995; Organized Crime in America, Wadsworth, 1995) and Waring (Crimes of the Middle Classes: White Collar Offenders in the Federal Courts, Yale Univ., 1991) examine this issue in the first scholarly work on Russian criminal activity in America since the Soviet collapse. From immigrant involvement in American organized crime since the late 19th century, the book moves to the Russian experience in America, the Soviet Union, and contemporary Russia. Finally, the authors use detailed information from investigators in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania to determine the range and scope of recent Russian criminal activity. They conclude that organized criminal activity exists but does not have the level of organization of the Cosa Nostra. Well researched and written, this work is an interesting addition for criminology collections.?Stephen L. Hupp, Urbana Univ. Lib., OH
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Northeastern (November 15, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1555535089
• ISBN-13: 978-1555535087
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,521,274 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Interesting approach but..., December 8, 2004

By 

William R. Geary "CrJuPhD" (Horsham, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Russian Mafia In America: Immigration, Culture, and Crime (Paperback)

As an assistant professor in Criminal Justice I am constantly searching for new material on organized crime. I used this book for a graduate course on the topic in Spring 05 and neither I nor the students were very impressed. There are three basic issues to be raised:
1. On ethnicity: On the first page of text the author states: "For all Russians, being especially adaptive and innovative often meant putting aside morality and legality, and this outlook-- characterized by rationalization, hypocrisy, and a double standard of morality-- to varying degrees shapes the thinking and behavior of almost all Soviet Russians who have come to America." A Russian immigrant friend of mine read this passage and said, "I agree completely." After some further thought he then said, "But doesn't this describe Americans as well?" The thought that criminal motivation is based on ethnicity is a throwback to organized crime theories up through the 1960s and 1970s. Social science recognizes that types of crimes may be related to ethnicity through experience and opportunity, but the rationalizations, hypocrisies, and double moral standards of organized criminals are human, rather than Russian American, traits.
2. There is a definite over dependence on governmental data sources. While government sources are useful, those of use in the field recognize the need to balance this information with other source types.
3. The conclusion is that there is no Russian Mafia in America. Summed up by one of my students: "Maybe the shape of mafia as an organized crime type has changed." The strict definition of "mafia" used in the book excludes almost every type of criminal organization found in the world today. More time should be spent on predicting future patterns or perhaps explaining how and why the "mafia" model is no longer applicable to organized crime in general. Part of this stems from too much reliance on government data which still organizes organized crime according to a mafia template.
One important good note: The discussion on how media distorts perceptions of organized crime is well written and, for the most part, well researched.
I think a book like this had to be written as part of the evolution of understanind on Russian-American organized crime. I say this in the hope that better things will eventually come about.

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too scholarly. Skip unless using for a sociology paper., August 6, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Russian Mafia In America: Immigration, Culture, and Crime (Hardcover)

I found this quite well-researched book too clinical for a juicy subject of the organized crime. More than anything it is a consolidation of previous works of journalists and investigators presented in a tone of a laboratory study. Few interesting historical backgrounds in each chapter are outweighed by bland data analysis that seems endless, and in this respect the book, in my opinion, is of low literary value to the general public. Spare yourself time and money and look for authors who interview the subjects firsthand, such as C. Freeland, P Klebnikov, R. Freedman, etc.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT, July 13, 2003

By 

Bryce Wylie (Camp Pendleton, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Russian Mafia In America: Immigration, Culture, and Crime (Paperback)

Anything that exposes criminal elements in our society is worth reading and analyzing. The Russian Mafia, however, with its' fierce reputation throughout the world and dabblings in everything from prostitution, gambling, stolen merchandise, and even rumored nuclear technology, is not to be feared. This book exposes the Russian Mafia in America and how they are controlling whatever they touch and goes into great detail in examining the illegal immigration and citizenship schemes,
overseen, yes, by the Russian Mafia. Personally, I believe the Russian Mafia has weaknesses in organization, structure, and even leadership which will eventually weaken these Siberian slugs to a hard downfall. Further, from reading this book, I think the Russkies are enjoying capitalism just a little too much.