Dark networks: a South African cash-in-transit crime case study
| dc.contributor.advisor | Van Der Spuy, Elrena | |
| dc.contributor.author | Kok, Anna-Maria | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-11-26T10:07:36Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2025-11-26T10:07:36Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2025 | |
| dc.date.updated | 2025-11-26T10:05:56Z | |
| dc.description.abstract | Institution Centre of Criminology, Department of Public Law, University of Cape Town The subject matter of this thesis is situated within the criminological domain of organised crime, exploring the structure of cash-in-transit criminal networks in South Africa. Whilst the current literature on cash-in-transit robberies is sparse, academic research on the criminal networks involved in these crimes is non-existent, partly due to the difficulty of obtaining reliable data on inherently covert operations. Therefore, the prevailing understanding of these networks is primarily informed by qualitative interpretations of the phenomenon. This study addresses this lacuna by advancing a mixed methods approach: network analysis is applied to a case study to investigate the nature and functioning of a cash-in-transit criminal network, with the findings substantiated by interviews with members from the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations, the cash-in-transit industry, and subject experts. The case study entails a notorious cash-in-transit robbery in KwaZulu-Natal, with the empirical data on the links among the offenders sourced from criminal justice records. By taking a structural approach, this study explores the characteristics of the empirical criminal network, providing a detailed analysis and visual representation of the connectivity patterns, including network-, community-, and node-level measures. Consistent with illicit network literature, this research demonstrates that disruption strategies based on social capital measures are far more effective than random targeting in dismantling a cash-in-transit criminal network. Informed by the network analysis and interviews, this thesis conceptualises the cash-in-transit criminal network cycle, which results in either trust or distrust among members following each iteration. Finally, the research shows that the stakeholders involved in policing the phenomenon are knowledgeable about criminal networks, but that a lack of crime intelligence, analytical capacity, and cooperation severely limits their ability to respond effectively. | |
| dc.identifier.apacitation | Kok, A. (2025). <i>Dark networks: a South African cash-in-transit crime case study</i>. (). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Law ,Department of Public Law. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42349 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.chicagocitation | Kok, Anna-Maria. <i>"Dark networks: a South African cash-in-transit crime case study."</i> ., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Law ,Department of Public Law, 2025. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42349 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.citation | Kok, A. 2025. Dark networks: a South African cash-in-transit crime case study. . University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Law ,Department of Public Law. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42349 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.ris | TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Kok, Anna-Maria AB - Institution Centre of Criminology, Department of Public Law, University of Cape Town The subject matter of this thesis is situated within the criminological domain of organised crime, exploring the structure of cash-in-transit criminal networks in South Africa. Whilst the current literature on cash-in-transit robberies is sparse, academic research on the criminal networks involved in these crimes is non-existent, partly due to the difficulty of obtaining reliable data on inherently covert operations. Therefore, the prevailing understanding of these networks is primarily informed by qualitative interpretations of the phenomenon. This study addresses this lacuna by advancing a mixed methods approach: network analysis is applied to a case study to investigate the nature and functioning of a cash-in-transit criminal network, with the findings substantiated by interviews with members from the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations, the cash-in-transit industry, and subject experts. The case study entails a notorious cash-in-transit robbery in KwaZulu-Natal, with the empirical data on the links among the offenders sourced from criminal justice records. By taking a structural approach, this study explores the characteristics of the empirical criminal network, providing a detailed analysis and visual representation of the connectivity patterns, including network-, community-, and node-level measures. Consistent with illicit network literature, this research demonstrates that disruption strategies based on social capital measures are far more effective than random targeting in dismantling a cash-in-transit criminal network. Informed by the network analysis and interviews, this thesis conceptualises the cash-in-transit criminal network cycle, which results in either trust or distrust among members following each iteration. Finally, the research shows that the stakeholders involved in policing the phenomenon are knowledgeable about criminal networks, but that a lack of crime intelligence, analytical capacity, and cooperation severely limits their ability to respond effectively. DA - 2025 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town KW - Cash-in-Transit Crime KW - Organised Criminal Networks KW - Criminal Network Anal- ysis KW - Disruption KW - South Africa LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2025 T1 - Dark networks: a South African cash-in-transit crime case study TI - Dark networks: a South African cash-in-transit crime case study UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42349 ER - | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42349 | |
| dc.identifier.vancouvercitation | Kok A. Dark networks: a South African cash-in-transit crime case study. []. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Law ,Department of Public Law, 2025 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42349 | en_ZA |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.language.rfc3066 | eng | |
| dc.publisher.department | Department of Public Law | |
| dc.publisher.faculty | Faculty of Law | |
| dc.publisher.institution | University of Cape Town | |
| dc.subject | Cash-in-Transit Crime | |
| dc.subject | Organised Criminal Networks | |
| dc.subject | Criminal Network Anal- ysis | |
| dc.subject | Disruption | |
| dc.subject | South Africa | |
| dc.title | Dark networks: a South African cash-in-transit crime case study | |
| dc.type | Thesis / Dissertation | |
| dc.type.qualificationlevel | Doctoral | |
| dc.type.qualificationlevel | PhD |