Serious Organised Crime Taskforce Progress Report 2025

What serious organised crime looks like in Scotland

Serious organised crime (SOC) is defined in Scotland’s SOC Strategy as crime which:

• is organised, meaning that it involves control, planning and, potentially, use of specialist resources;
• causes, or has the potential to cause, significant harm; and
• involves financial or other benefit to the individuals concerned.

This broad definition means that SOC presents in many forms, including drugs, violence, human trafficking, child sexual abuse and exploitation, cybercrime including fraud and more. In Scotland, SOC is responsible for causing substantial economic and social harm to individuals, businesses, and communities. The aim of the SOC Strategy is to reduce SOC and the harm it causes in Scotland.

As of March 2025, 94 Serious Organised Crime Groups (SOCGs) were recorded as operating in Scotland, comprising 1,202 individuals.

• Within the three main policing areas in Scotland, 44% are located in the west, 22% in the east and 19% in the north. 15% are spread across the three areas.
• 70% of SOCGs are involved in drug crime with cocaine and cannabis the most common commodities.
• 61% of mapped operations are involved in the use of seemingly legitimate businesses, 57 SOCGs and three Vulnerabilities have links to quasi-legitimate businesses. Property remains the most common business sector closely followed by service/retail, vehicle/transport, catering/food and licensed premises.

As at the end of March 2025, there were 108 SOC nominals incarcerated within 13 of the 15 prison establishments in Scotland. These individuals are linked to 40 mapped SOCGs.