Concept in Definition ABC

The crime of extortion occurs when someone coerces another person to carry out an act contrary to her will in order to obtain some benefit, usually a lucrative one.

Normally to achieve his purpose the extortionist resorts to the violence or some kind of intimidation against the extorted person. This criminal figure bears a certain resemblance to others, for example robbery or blackmail.

It is a malicious crime and the person who commits it is usually part of a group of delinquency organized. In any of its forms, extortion is based on intimidation and the use of some form of violence ("you pay me 1000 dollars or you family runs danger"," Do you accept the protection or I'll burn your business ", would be common phrases among those who engage in extortion).

Typical examples

- One or more criminals demand a financial amount from a victim in exchange for protection. This criminal practice is part of the tradition mobster.

-An individual is held against her will in order to blackmail his relatives into paying a ransom for her release.

- Prison extortion occurs over the telephone and consists of a prisoner posing as a member of a criminal gang to blackmail his victim with some type of threat.

- Sexual extortion on social networks consists of blackmailing someone not to spread images of sexual content. The person who commits this type of crime may be a former partner of the victim, a pedophile or directly a professional extortionist.

From the point of view of psychology

The extortionist knows that threats provoke intense fear that blocks the victim's mind. Extortion is based on fear that affects the injured person. What rule In general, there are three aspects that intervene: the surprise factor, the emotional imbalance and the lack of information. The fear that occurs after an extortion call can provoke two different reactions:

1) hang up the phone and ask for some help or

2) feel paralyzed and continue the conversation with the extortionist.

Extortion of businessmen and merchants

Entrepreneurs and merchants are potential victims of this type of crime. For this reason, experts recommend increasing the measures of safety and develop a strategic plan to act against possible extortion. It must be taken into account that in some countries many businesses have been forced to close because they do not want or cannot pay the "tax of war "of the groups that are dedicated to the extortion.

Photos: Fotolia - Daniel Jedzura / kasto

Extortion Topics