OCGs – what they are and how to keep safe

Organised crime groups (OCG) are operating across the UK, including here in Staffordshire. Understanding what they are and the signs they are operating near you can help keep you safe and limit the risks of exploitation.

OCGs, which are often referred to publicly as gangs, involve a number of individuals working together to facilitate organised criminal activity. They plan their operations, like drug dealing or possessing weapons, and work together in various roles to continue facilitating their crimes.

As an example, a county line is a mobile phone used to sell drugs in local communities. Usually, the person actually delivering the drugs to people is called a ‘runner’. They will be in charge of collecting the drugs from a drop-off or base, taking them to the sale and exchanging them with the customer. Behind this, organised criminals will be facilitating the operation, sending runners from one place to another to complete the deals on their behalf. Usually, the higher it goes in the chain of command, the more sophisticated and dangerous these criminals become.

Similarly, in organised operations like cannabis cultivation, sexual exploitation (like brothels or designated places where sex workers can be accessed in exchange for money), firearm dealing and acts of violence against targeted individuals, OCGs are causing harm in local communities.

Importantly, OCGs often look for vulnerable people living or working locally and will look to coerce them into their operations. They often promise sums of money, but very quickly use intimidation and violent tactics to exploit people into a life of crime.

These vulnerable people are often the ones who end up getting caught by police and charged with offences, because of how OCGs operate. Then, OCGs will look to recruit someone else, and the cycle continues, until the main orchestraters are caught and brought to justice.

Superintendent Phil Bryan, who leads on our work against OCGs, said: “Understanding what OCGs are and how they damage local communities is a key part of our work in identifying the main players involved and taking action before exploitation takes place.

“We’re taking proactive action every single day in Staffordshire to identify OCG members and to take robust action through the courts, especially those facilitating the operations and coercing others into carrying out the acts on their behalf.”

Signs that someone might be getting exploited by an OCG, include:

• Repeatedly going missing from home or school/university and being found in other areas
• Having new money (especially cash), clothes or electronic devices that they can’t explain how they paid for
• Always on the phone and getting a large number of texts and calls. They might also be secretive about what’s on their phone or who is trying to contact them
• Changes to their behaviour or well-being
• A decline in their performance at school or work
• Cutting ties with long-standing friends and relatives.

Signs that OCGs are operating in your area:

• Large gatherings of people, often at unsociable hours that repeat at the same location
• People taking obvious attempts to avoid being identified, like wearing face coverings, hoods and avoiding areas with clear CCTV coverage
• QR codes stuck onto lampposts and places in public, often advertising the sale of drugs locally
• Social media content orchestrated by a single group, sometimes using postcodes or codenames to refer to themselves as a collective.

Reporting this type of activity is vital in us building intelligence against these networks and acting to remove them from inside local communities. Back in December, an OCG who were responsible for stealing more than 70 vehicles were also jailed for more than 25 years collectively. Read more here: Gang who stole more than 70 vehicles jailed for collective 27 years | Staffordshire Police

If you think you’ve seen OCGs operating near you, or if you’re worried that someone might be getting exploited by these groups, call us on 101 or use Live Chat on our website.

To report anonymously, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.