The Crossing: The shocking truth about gang wars in Brexit Britain

by Wensley Clarkson

The Dartford a vital transport hub connecting Kent and Essex, the busiest river crossing in Europe, and the site of some of the most vicious organised crime today...

For the last decade, there has been a intense turf war in the south-east of England between two sets of criminal

On one side, there's the 'Establishment' - the old-school firms that have operated for decades and weaved their way into all areas of their communities. On the other, 'The New Kids on the Bloc' - mainly Eastern European gangs
who have muscled in, boasting they'll crush anyone in their way and dominate the British underworld.

The Dartford Crossing, due to its location between London and the ports of the south-east, has become the epicentre of these battles.

Since Brexit began, the war has become even bloodier as both gangs try to claim new territory before the borders close. In an already terrifying and volatile world of drug smuggling, people trafficking, prostitution and money laundering, all rules are out and the body count is rising...

With research and interviews from both sides conducted by one of true crime's most established names, The Crossing is a ground-breaking and fascinating look inside the UK's newest crime phenomenon.

271 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 22, 2019

Reviews

[Zahida Zahoor]

Thrilling, had me hooked until the end!
The story is written from the gangster’s point of view. Clarkson is a brave man to go into the underworld to show us the truth and the scale of the problem we have in Britain concerning: drugs, money laundering, sex trafficking and people smuggling.
Clarkson highlights that foreign criminals, especially from Russian, Romania and other Eastern European countries, are involved in some of Brittan’s most notorious crimes. I agree with Clarkson that the homegrown villains (I love the use of that word in the book) would not be any better or have any more morals. Foreign criminals are able to set up operations quicker and better in the UK because they have the skills, drive, connections and gun power behind them.
Even though a lot of what was written in the book I knew was already going on, I didn’t realise the extent turf wars happened and how agile the foreign criminals were. They seemed to be one step ahead of the police, explaining why it is so difficult to capture and prosecute some of these villains.

[Benjamin Stahl]

Quite an eye-opening look into the world of crime across London, with a focus on the often violent confrontations between the "old school" British gangs and the foreigners, predominantly eastern Europeans. Though Clarkson literally leaves about two or three sentences at the end of the book to mention Brexit - essentially arguing that it will not reduce gang warfare and the dearth of European mafias, but will in fact make it even worse - he does do a pretty good job in detailing the complexities of the issues. I have to say, he's a brave bastard to go so involved with these guys himself, maintain a strictly neutral position. It's funny because it sometimes felt like you were supposed to take the side o the British criminals - or maybe that was just my underdog sympathies coming through - but in truth it's hard to really care that much for any of them.

[Chris Sapwell]

Absolute dribble. Maybe good if you are seven years old. The literary equivalent of a Channel 5 documentary meant to shock Middle England, no genuine insight or serious intellectual depth. Shit, the audiobook accents were pretty offensive too.

[Andy Blackwell]

Fascinating insights into organised crime activities in the UK. Well-researched and believable!

[Katie Woodhouse]

An eye opening account of gangs in Britain.