1. Introduction and Methodology.- 2. History, Homicide, Organised Crime and Theory.- 3. Contract Killers and Glocal Organised Crime: A Case Study of the ‘Baby-Faced’ Assassin.- 4. Drugs, Guns and Organised Crime: A Case Study of the Journeyman Hitman.- 5. Violent Men: Trauma, Humiliation and Scenarios of Harm.- 6. Homicide and Organised Crime in Birmingham, West Midlands: Future Directions and Closing Comments.

This book offers rich ethnographic and narrative accounts of men who have been engaged in serious violence and organised crime in the West Midlands, England, drawing on several theoretical paradigms. Through case study examples, it considers contract killers and the nefarious position that ‘hitmen’ occupy in the criminal underworld. By charting insider perspectives from retired police officers, informants, ex-military personnel and ex-offenders, this book speaks to those who have a vested interest in violence, organised crime and ethnography. 

“Mohammed Rahman’s book is one that is essentially about violent men, all of whom have been part of organised crime networks in and beyond the West Midlands area of England.  This is a stand-out text. Carefully researched, innovative in approach and accessibly written, it is a must-read for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the structural backdrop of lethal violence within the West Midlands, and its ‘glocal’ influences.” (Professor Ross Deuchar, University of the West of Scotland, UK)“In Homicide and Organised Crime, Mohammed Rahman offers readers a rare glimpse inside the hidden world of extra-legal violence. Biographical case studies and rich narratives from several underworld actors shed light on the complex mechanisms behind street justice and contract killings, whilst Rahman’s own ‘dash-cam ethnography’, a research innovation, helps contextualise and reconstruct the violence discussed. In a world obsessed with sensationalised true crime stories, Rahman lets violentoffenders speak their truth, unscripted, which yields important new insights. Students and scholars of criminology will delight in this book.” (Professor James Densley, Metropolitan State University, USA) “There is an audience for narratives of mayhem and murder. Mohammed Rahman’s book is distinctive, in that he goes beyond the spectacular and the popular to drill down into a patch of the West Midlands, England.  He also connects back those local particularities to global changes and wider constructions of masculinities. Furthermore, he mirrors some of the nefarious street-level activities of the men he investigates with his own ‘dash-cam ethnography’.  This allows him, and us, to ride along or just drive by” (Dr Nic Groombridge, University of South Wales, UK)

Draws on multiple research methods to offer novel insights into homicide and organised crime Argues that fatal violence is used as an alternative form of criminal justice by these criminal groups Examines the social embeddedness of organised crime in the West Midlands Identifies precursors to homicide within organised crime groups

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