If Brexit changes the routings and logistics for a range of legitimate goods destined for the UK (which are typically used as cover or concealment for drugs), we can not only expect the drugs to increasingly arrive direct in the UK, but to be followed by the kind of corruption and violence suffered for decades by The Netherlands and, more recently, Belgium. It is feasible to conclude that in addition to increased corruption and violence in and around our ports, significant non-EU crime figures may also re-establish in the UK – securing control of their consignments in proximity to points of arrival. For cocaine, this will likely mean an increase in the presence of Western Balkan and Latin American OCGs, the primary controllers of the large shipments of cocaine destined for the UK. If the tensions experienced in Antwerp and Rotterdam are replicated around UK seaports, this will generate increased violence and incidents of crime related murder.
