NCJ Number
72967
Journal
FIREHOUSE Volume: 5 Issue: 8 Dated: (August 1980) Pages: 34-35,38,40,58
Date Published
1980
Length
5 pages
Annotation
The types and functions of career criminals responsible for the arson-for-profit epidemic in the U.S. are described.
Abstract
To combat arson-for-profit effectively, authorities must know the types of specialists that contribute their skills to each arson-for-profit scheme. Torches set the fires and are frequently the most dificult to apprehend. Recruited from the ranks of burglars and other petty thieves, they usually specialize according to types of structures. Master torches are torches who have graduated into planning and supervisory roles, acting as prime contractors for the owner or fire broker. Torches are usually paid a flat fee of between $500 and $1,000 in cash. Strategies to apprehend torches normally rely on the search for eyewitnesses. Pigeons are people who steer owners to torches. Most are from the fringes of professional, organized, or white-collar crime. They normally remain anonymous in any investigation because they do not show up in any of the property or insurance transactions recorded on paper. Fire brokers also steer owners to torches, but they bring considerable white-collar expertise to increasing the profits from arson by recruiting specialists who will contribute something to the arson, insurance, or other related financial fraud. They take between 10 and 20 percent of the insurance settlement for their services. Since the broker is known to other arson specialists, a law enforcement strategy to combat brokers might be to focus on one or more of the other participants in an effort to have the broker identified. Finally, organized crime figures are also involved in arson-for-profit schemes to benefit themselves by forming monopolies, collecting debts, or creating a specialized racketeering enterprise.