Cape Verdean organized crime refers to the various criminal organizations that are active in Cape Verdean diaspora communities. The Cape Verdean Islands themselves are not main centres for criminal activities, but Cape Verde's increased importance as a transshipment point in the West African cocaine trade and the existence of sizeable Cape Verdean communities in New England, the Dutch port city of Rotterdam as well as in several cities in Portugal, France and Switzerland led to the formation of criminal gangs in the community active in the international drug trade supplemented with other criminal activities. Cape Verdean organized crime primarily comes in the form of street gangs, with varying levels of organization and sophistication.