Exploring Co-offending Networks by Considering Geographic Background: An Investigation of Electric Bicycle Thefts in Beijing

Abstract

Co-offending refers to illegal activities that are committed by multiple parties together. Little attention has been paid to co-offenders' geographic background when examining co-offender groups. To investigate the impact of geographic homophilous relation on co-offending networks, we analyzed the offender data of electric bicycle thefts in Beijing between 2010 and 2012. Geographic information system and social network analysis methods were used. Three major findings are reported in this article. Most electric bicycle thieves in Beijing are immigrants to the city, and most of them are from a number of clustered places in Central China. Most co-offender groups are formed through inward offending ties, meaning that the co-offenders are from the same town or city; however, for the cross-area co-offenders, the co-offending networks tend to be complex. For the co-offending networks formed by cross-area co-offenders, a few key areas play important roles in the formation of co-offending networks as they supply more and dynamic co-offenders. The findings have theoretical and practical implications for understanding and managing co-offending networks for Beijing's electric bicycle thefts.

共同犯罪指的是由多方共同进行的非法活动。当检视共同犯罪群体时, 却鲜少关注共同犯罪者的地理背景。为了探讨地理同质关系对共同犯罪网络的影响, 我们分析北京自 2010 年至 2012 年的电动自行车窃案的犯罪者数据。我们运用地理信息系统与社会网络分析方法。本文报导三大研究发现: 北京的电动自行车窃贼, 多半是该城中的移入人口, 且其中大半来自于中国中部的几处聚集地。多半的共同犯罪群体, 是透过内向的犯罪联系所组成, 意味着共同犯罪者来自相同的城镇; 但对于跨地域的共同犯罪者而言, 共同犯罪网络倾向更为复杂。由跨地域的共同犯罪者所组成的共同犯罪网络中, 几个关键地区在形成共同犯罪网络中扮演着重要的角色, 因其提供更多且更强而有力的共同犯罪者。研究发现对于理解与控管北京电动自行车偷窃的共同犯罪网络具有理论及实务意涵。

La co-transgresión se refiere a actividades ilegales cometidas en conjunto por múltiples personas. Poca ha sido la atención brindada a los antecedentes geográficos de los co-transgresores cuando se examinan los grupos co-transgresivos. Para investigar el impacto de la relación geográfica homófila en las redes de co-transgresión, analizamos los datos del transgresor en los robos de bicicletas eléctricas en Beijing, entre el 2010 y el 2012. Se usaron sistemas de información geográfica y métodos de análisis de redes sociales. En el artículo se informa sobre tres hallazgos principales. La mayoría de los ladrones de bicicletas eléctricas de Beijing son inmigrantes a la ciudad, y la mayoría proceden de un número de lugares apiñados de China Central. La mayoría de los grupos de co-transgresores se han formado a través de vínculos delincuenciales encerrados, o sea que los co-transgresores proceden del mismo pueblo o ciudad; sin embargo, para los co-transgresores que sobrepasan su área, las redes de co-transgresión tienden a ser muy complejas. Para aquellas redes de co-transgresión formadas por co-transgresores que sobrepasan un área, unas cuantas áreas juegan roles importantes en la formación de redes de co-transgresión, por cuanto ellas suministran co-transgresores más numerosos y dinámicos. Los hallazgos tienen implicaciones teóricas y prácticas para entender y manejar las redes de co-transgresión para los robos de bicicletas eléctricas en Beijing.

Key Words:

• co-offender
• co-offending network
• geographic homophily
• network centrality
• social network analysis

关键词:

• 共同犯罪者
• 共同犯罪网络
• 地理同质性
• 网络中心性
• 社会网络分析。

Palabras clave:

• co-transgresor
• red de co-transgresión
• homofilia geográfica
• red de centralidad
• análisis de redes sociales

Acknowledgments

Both authors thank the editor and the anonymous reviewers for their helpful and constructive comments.

Funding

Peng Chen is grateful for support by the National Science & Technology Pillar Program of China during the 12th Five-Year Plan Period (No. 2015BAK12B03) and a Science & Technology Grant sponsored by the People's Public Security University of China (No. 2016JKF01211). Yongmei Lu would like to acknowledge the support of the Collaborative Innovation Center of Public Safety for sponsoring her research visit to the People's Public Security University of China in summer 2016.

Note

Notes

1 The original registered residence place (ORRP) recorded by citizen ID is the residence place at birth or at the time when and a citizen ID was obtained for the first time. For those who moved away from their ORRP for reasons including attending college, job opportunities, or other, ORRP might not reflect the individual's current registered residence place.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Peng Chen

PENG CHEN is an Associate Professor of the School of Information and Cyber Security at People's Public Security University of China, Daxing District, Beijing, 102600, P.R. China. E-mail: [email protected]. His research interests include crime pattern analysis, spatial data mining, civil disorder modeling, and simulation.

Yongmei Lu

YONGMEI LU is a Professor in the Department of Geography at Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666. E-mail: [email protected]. Her research focuses on GIS and spatial analysis of crime and health issues.