What Are the 35 Crimes of Racketeering Under RICO?

The 35 crimes of racketeering under RICO are the categories of offenses that Congress listed in 18 U.S.C. § 1961(1) as “predicate acts” — the underlying crimes that can support a federal racketeering charge. The list has grown since RICO was enacted in 1970, and it now covers more than the original 35 categories, including additions like human trafficking, firearms trafficking, and terrorism offenses. If a person commits at least two qualifying acts within a ten-year period as part of a criminal enterprise, prosecutors can bring a RICO case carrying up to 20 years in prison per count, or life if any underlying offense carries a life sentence.¹

How a Crime Becomes a RICO Predicate

Each qualifying crime is called a predicate act, and the government must prove at least two of them within ten years to establish a “pattern of racketeering activity.” The two acts don’t have to be the same type of crime. A fraud scheme and a bribery charge can combine, as long as both are tied to the same enterprise.¹

The acts also have to be related and show either ongoing criminal conduct or a threat of future criminal activity. The Supreme Court has held that two isolated incidents a few weeks apart, with no indication of future repetition, are not enough. Predicate acts need to share similar purposes, victims, methods, or participants, and they must reflect a sustained pattern rather than a coincidence.²

Predicate acts alone are not enough. Prosecutors also have to prove the existence of an enterprise — a group of people or entities associated for a common purpose. That can be a formal organization like a corporation, labor union, or political party, or an informal group like a street gang. The enterprise has to be distinct from the individual defendants, meaning a single person acting alone cannot be both the enterprise and the defendant.¹

State Felony Categories

Under subsection (A) of the statute, nine categories of state-level crimes qualify as racketeering predicates when they are chargeable under state law and punishable by more than one year in prison. That one-year threshold filters out minor misdemeanors; only felony-level conduct counts.¹

Murder — any act or threat of murder chargeable as a state felony.
Kidnapping — unlawful seizure or confinement of another person.
Gambling — operating or participating in illegal gambling operations.
Arson — intentionally setting fire to property.
Robbery — taking property from another by force or threat of force.
Bribery — offering or accepting payments to influence official conduct.
Extortion — obtaining money or property through coercion or threats.
Dealing in obscene matter — producing, distributing, or selling obscene material.
Dealing in controlled substances — manufacturing, distributing, or trafficking drugs or listed chemicals under the Controlled Substances Act.

These state crimes become federal racketeering predicates when committed as part of an ongoing criminal enterprise. A local drug operation can be prosecuted federally under RICO if the government ties it to a broader organizational pattern, even if state authorities have already filed charges for the same conduct.

Federal Fraud and Financial Predicates

A large share of RICO prosecutions rest on financial and fraud offenses listed in subsection (B). Mail fraud and wire fraud are by far the most commonly charged predicates because they reach almost any scheme that involves a letter, phone call, or electronic communication.

Mail fraud (§ 1341) — using postal services or private carriers to carry out a scheme to defraud, punishable by up to 20 years, or up to 30 years if a financial institution is affected.³
Wire fraud (§ 1343) — using electronic communications to carry out a fraud scheme, with the same penalty structure as mail fraud.⁴
Financial institution fraud (§ 1344) — defrauding a bank, credit union, or similar institution.
Counterfeiting (§§ 471–473) — producing, possessing, or passing counterfeit currency or securities.
Money laundering (§ 1956) — running transactions with proceeds of illegal activity while knowing the funds are dirty, punishable by up to 20 years and fines up to $500,000 or twice the value of the property involved.⁵
Monetary transactions in criminal proceeds (§ 1957) — knowingly engaging in financial transactions over $10,000 involving property derived from illegal activity.
Securities fraud — fraud connected to the buying or selling of stocks, bonds, or other investment instruments.
Bankruptcy fraud — fraud connected with a federal bankruptcy case.
Fraud with identification documents (§ 1028) — producing, transferring, or using fake IDs.
Fraud with access devices (§ 1029) — trafficking in stolen credit card numbers, PINs, or other access devices.
Fraud in foreign labor contracting (§ 1351) — defrauding workers recruited from outside the United States.
Embezzlement from pension and welfare funds (§ 664) — stealing from employee retirement or benefit plans.
Theft from interstate shipment (§ 659) — stealing cargo moving through interstate commerce, when charged as a felony.
Extortionate credit transactions (§§ 891–894) — loan-sharking operations that use threats of violence to collect debts.
Currency reporting violations — violating the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act, which covers structuring deposits and failing to file required currency transaction reports.
Economic espionage and theft of trade secrets (§§ 1831–1832) — stealing proprietary business information for a foreign government or for commercial advantage.

Federal Violent and Vice Predicates

The statute also reaches violent crimes and vice operations — the conduct most associated with traditional organized crime, street gangs, and drug cartels.

Murder-for-hire (§ 1958) — using interstate commerce to arrange a contract killing. If someone dies, the penalty is death or life in prison; if someone is injured, up to 20 years.⁶
Hobbs Act robbery and extortion (§ 1951) — interfering with interstate commerce through robbery, extortion, or threats of violence, punishable by up to 20 years per count.⁷
Illegal gambling businesses (§ 1955) — running a gambling operation with five or more people that violates state law and either operates substantially continuously for more than 30 days or takes in at least $2,000 in gross revenue in a single day.⁸
Transmission of gambling information (§ 1084) — using wire communications to transmit bets or betting information across state or national borders.
Interstate transportation of wagering paraphernalia (§ 1953) — shipping gambling equipment or materials across state lines.
Interstate travel in aid of racketeering (§ 1952) — traveling between states or using interstate facilities to promote, manage, or carry out illegal activity.
Sexual exploitation of children (§§ 2251–2252) — producing, distributing, or possessing child sexual abuse material.
Federal controlled substance offenses — manufacturing, importing, or distributing drugs or listed chemicals under federal law.
Dealing in obscene matter (§§ 1461–1465) — mailing, importing, transporting, or broadcasting obscene material.
Trafficking in firearms (§ 933) and straw purchasing (§ 932) — illegally buying or selling firearms, including buying guns for someone prohibited from owning them.

Obstruction, Labor, and Document Offenses

Several predicates target efforts to corrupt the justice system, manipulate labor unions, or undermine government processes.

Obstruction and Witness Crimes

Obstruction of justice (§ 1503) — attempting to influence, intimidate, or impede a juror or court officer, punishable by up to 10 years, or up to 20 years if it involves an attempted killing or a serious felony case.⁹
Obstruction of criminal investigations (§ 1510) — interfering with federal law enforcement investigations.
Obstruction of state or local law enforcement (§ 1511) — impeding state or local officers, often in connection with illegal gambling or other organized vice.
Witness tampering (§ 1512) — intimidating, threatening, or corruptly persuading a witness, victim, or informant. Penalties reach 20 years, or 30 years if physical force is used.¹⁰
Witness retaliation (§ 1513) — retaliating against a witness, victim, or informant for cooperating with law enforcement.

Labor and Union Offenses

Illegal payments to labor organizations (29 U.S.C. § 186) — employers bribing union officials or making prohibited payments to labor organizations, with a maximum of five years for transactions over $1,000.¹¹
Embezzlement from union funds (29 U.S.C. § 501(c)) — stealing from a union’s treasury or other assets.
Unlawful welfare fund payments (§ 1954) — making prohibited payments related to employee benefit plans.

Citizenship and Passport Fraud

Citizenship and naturalization fraud (§§ 1425–1427) — unlawfully procuring citizenship, reproducing naturalization papers, or selling citizenship documents.
Passport and visa fraud (§§ 1542–1544, 1546) — making false statements on passport applications, forging passports, misusing them, or committing visa fraud.

Immigration Offenses

Congress expanded RICO in 1996 to include certain Immigration and Nationality Act violations when committed for financial gain. These are found in subsection (F):¹²

Bringing in and harboring undocumented immigrants (INA § 274) — smuggling people into the country or concealing them from authorities.
Aiding or assisting unlawful entry (INA § 277) — helping someone enter the United States illegally.
Importation of persons for immoral purposes (INA § 278) — bringing someone into the country for prostitution or other exploitative purposes.

These immigration violations only qualify as RICO predicates when committed for financial gain. Helping a family member cross a border without any profit motive does not meet the standard.

Human Trafficking and Terrorism

Federal laws against peonage, slavery, forced labor, and human trafficking (§§ 1581–1592) are listed as RICO predicates under subsection (B). Congress added trafficking crimes through the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003, recognizing that trafficking operations often function as large-scale criminal enterprises. These sections cover forced labor, sex trafficking, and the confiscation of documents used to control victims.¹³

Subsection (G), also added after the original enactment, makes any offense listed in 18 U.S.C. § 2332b(g)(5)(B) a RICO predicate. That sweeps in a broad range of terrorism-related crimes: use of weapons of mass destruction, bombing public places, providing material support to terrorist organizations, financing terrorism, attacks on aircraft or maritime vessels, and hostage taking.¹⁴

Penalties for a RICO Conviction

A RICO conviction carries up to 20 years in federal prison per count. If any underlying predicate offense carries a maximum of life imprisonment, such as a murder-for-hire that results in death, the RICO sentence can also be life.¹⁵

Fines can reach $250,000 for an individual or $500,000 for an organization under the general federal sentencing statute.¹⁶ If the defendant earned profits from the racketeering activity, the court may instead impose a fine of up to twice those gross profits.¹⁵

RICO also requires criminal forfeiture. The court must order the defendant to forfeit any interest acquired through the enterprise, any property giving the defendant influence over the enterprise, and any proceeds obtained from the racketeering activity. That can include bank accounts, real estate, vehicles, businesses, and investments. The statute says the court “shall order” forfeiture, and it applies regardless of any conflicting state law.¹⁵

Civil RICO Claims Based on the Same Predicates

RICO is not limited to criminal prosecution. Any person injured in their business or property by a RICO violation can sue in federal court. A successful plaintiff recovers three times their actual damages plus the cost of the lawsuit, including reasonable attorney’s fees.¹⁷

A civil RICO claim requires a concrete financial loss, not just an abstract harm, and the plaintiff has to show the racketeering activity directly caused the injury. One significant limit: conduct actionable as securities fraud generally cannot be used to establish a civil RICO claim, unless the defendant has already been criminally convicted for the underlying securities fraud.¹⁷

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1961 Definitions
2
United States Department of Justice. Criminal Resource Manual 109 RICO Charges
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1341 Frauds and Swindles
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1343 Fraud by Wire, Radio, or Television
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1956 Laundering of Monetary Instruments
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1958 Use of Interstate Commerce Facilities in the Commission of Murder-for-Hire
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1951 Interference with Commerce by Threats or Violence
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1955 Prohibition of Illegal Gambling Businesses
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1503 Influencing or Injuring Officer or Juror Generally
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1512 Tampering with a Witness, Victim, or an Informant
11
United States Department of Justice. Criminal Resource Manual 2413 Outline of 29 USC 186 Taft-Hartley Act Sec 302
12
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1961 Definitions
13
United States Department of Justice. Human Trafficking Key Legislation
14
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2332b Acts of Terrorism Transcending National Boundaries
15
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1963 Criminal Penalties
16
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 3571 Sentence of Fine
17
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1964 Civil Remedies