A senior police officer in New South Wales has described a recent escalation in Sydney's gangland war as the start of a new era. Authorities say the city's underworld violence has flared up once again in recent weeks. The attacks, they note, have grown more brazen than before. Investigators are now turning their focus to preventing such attacks before they can happen.
The nature of the recent violence has alarmed police across the city. Officials pointed to incidents that included kidnapping innocent people and firebombing homes and businesses. They also cited a drive-by shooting at a funeral venue. Together, the cases painted a picture of an underworld willing to strike in increasingly public and reckless ways.
According to police, the way these crimes are being carried out has shifted. They say criminals for hire are increasingly being tasked with doing the dirty work. The head of the police force's organized crime squad directly called out the groups behind the violence. The officer framed the change in stark terms for the public.
"We're moving into an era of disorganized crime," the officer said. The phrase captured what authorities describe as a loosening of the old, tightly run criminal structures. Instead of single syndicates handling everything, the work is now being spread out. That shift, police say, is part of what makes the current wave so difficult to manage.
At the center of this new model, experts say, is a network of powerful brokers. A broker is typically described as a locally-based free agent. They receive requests from organized crime groups to arrange an attack. In effect, they act as middlemen between those who want violence carried out and those willing to do it.
The way the brokers operate adds another layer of difficulty for investigators. According to police, a broker splits the jobs into separate contracts. Those contracts are then posted to an online open market. There, the lowest bidder is hired to carry out the work that has been ordered.
This structure is precisely what makes the individuals so hard to catch. Because brokers float between groups and are not tied to a single crime syndicate, police say it is very hard to pinpoint them. To respond, investigators say they have adapted to the new model. They are now targeting a powerful player in an effort to stop attacks before they occur.