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prof. dr. Edward R. Kleemans

Full Professor, Faculty of Law, Criminology

Full Professor, A-LAB

Full Professor, Research Programmes - Law, Empirical and Normative Studies

Personal information

Edward Kleemans is Full Professor at the Department of Criminology, Faculty of Law, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Netherlands (Full Professor in Serious and Organized Crime and Criminal Justice) and conducts research into organized crime and cybercrime activities and the interaction between offenders and the criminal justice system (including policing issues).

He graduated in public administration and public policy (with the highest possible distinction) and earned a Ph.D. (with the highest possible distinction) from Twente University, the Netherlands. Until 2013, he was Head of the Crime, Law Enforcement and Sanctions Research Division (CRS) of the Research and Documentation Centre (WODC), Ministry of Security and Justice, the Hague, the Netherlands. He was Vice-Dean and Director of Research of the Faculty of Law in the period 2017-2023 and served as Acting Dean in 2019.

Edward Kleemans serves/served on the boards of several international scientific journals, a committee of the National Academy of Sciences (US), the Board of the European Society of Criminology (ESC) and the Center for Information and Research on Organized Crime (CIROC). He is also a Fellow of the Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR), part of the Institutes Organization of the Dutch Research Council (NWO).

Expertise

Edward Kleemans teaches Master courses and seminars for practioners and professionals on serious and organized crime, criminal justice, and criminology.

Postal address

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Department of Criminology
Faculty of Law
De Boelelaan 1105
1081 HV Amsterdam

Research

Edward Kleemans conducts research into organized crime and cybercrime activities and the interaction between offenders and the criminal justice system (including policing issues). He coordinated the Dutch Organized Crime Monitor (OCM), a landmark study in the field of organized crime, from its start in 1996 until 2013. The OCM is a systematic, continuing research programme of WODC, Erasmus University Rotterdam and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam regarding the nature of organized crime in the Netherlands, based upon intensive analysis police investigations. Next to involvement in the OCM, Edward Kleemans collaborated on many large research projects funded by the European Union, the Dutch Research Council (NWO), Police & Science, and the Home Office (UK). Current large projects involve a.o. NWA-projects EPIC (on youth involvement in organized crime), FIDBID (on forensic drug intelligence), and SCRIPT (on crime scripting).

His main research interests relate to organized crime and cybercrime, including drug trafficking, human smuggling, human trafficking, fraud and money laundering: social organization, embeddedness, and the interaction between offenders and the criminal justice system (including policing issues).

Selected publications

Four major reports to the Dutch Parliament (1998, 2002, 2007 and 2012) on the nature of organized crime in the Netherlands, based upon the Dutch Organized Crime Monitor (continuing project, 1996-now). In 2018-2019 several reports were published based on the fifth data sweep (including a report on organized crime and IT).
Kleemans, E.R., & Van Koppen, M.V. (2020). Organized Crime and Criminal Careers. Crime and Justice. A Review of Research 49: 385-423.
Leukfeldt, E.R., Kleemans, E.R., & Stol, W.Ph. (2017). Cybercriminal networks, social ties and online forums: Social ties versus digital ties within phishing and malware networks. British Journal of Criminology 57(3): 704-722.
Van Ooyen, M., & Kleemans, E.R. (2015). Drug Policy: The "Dutch Model". Crime and Justice. A Review of Research 44(1): 165-220.
Kleemans, E.R. (2014). Theoretical perspectives on organized crime. In: Paoli, L. (ed.). Oxford Handbook of Organized Crime. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Kleemans, E.R., and Smit, M. (2014). Human smuggling, human trafficking, and exploitation in the sex industry. In: Paoli, L. (ed.). Oxford Handbook of Organized Crime. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Huisman, W., & Kleemans, E.R. (2014). The challenges of fighting sex trafficking in the legalized prostitution market of the Netherlands. Crime, Law and Social Change 61(2): 215-228.
Kleemans, E.R., C.J. De Poot (2008). Criminal Careers in Organized Crime and Social Opportunity Structure. European Journal of Criminology 5 (1): 69-98.
Kleemans, E.R., & Van de Bunt, H.G. (2008). Organised Crime, Occupations and Opportunity. Global Crime 9 (3): 185-197.
Kleemans, E.R. (2007). Organized crime, transit crime, and racketeering . In: M. Tonry & C.J.C. Bijleveld (eds). Crime and Justice in the Netherlands. Crime and Justice: A Review of Research 35 (pp. 163-215). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Kleemans, E.R., H.G. van de Bunt (1999). The social embeddedness of organized crime, Transnational Organized Crime 5 (1): 19-36.

Teaching

Edward Kleemans teaches Master courses and seminars for practioners and professionals on serious and organized crime, policing and security, criminal justice, and criminology.

Ancillary activities