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The Crossing: The shocking truth about gang wars in Brexit Britain
'We will run everything in this country, robbery, drugs, trafficking, in five years' time. I promise you that.' - Vulo, Albanian Gangster
'They're committing outrageous crimes on our manor. They're telling us they can operate wherever they want and we can't do a thing about it. - Steve Marchmont, Essex Gangster
For the past decade European gangsters have been fighting a turf war with homegrown British gangsters for control of the criminal badlands of London, Kent, Essex and throughout the UK. Many of these foreign gangs see Kent and Essex as a stepping-stone to the total domination of the British underworld.
In the two years since the Brexit referendum this war has intensified with European gangsters deliberately setting out to win and establish their businesses, both illicit and legit, before the UK leaves the EU.
The stakes are worth billions of pounds. On one side are the so-called 'New Kids on the Bloc': Eastern Europeans, who have muscled in and boast that within the next five years they will crush all others and dominate the British criminal underworld. On the other side is the 'Establishment': the old school, British based crime syndicates that have been working this area for decades. They own homes, send their kids to area schools, are known denizens of the local pubs and football pitches - attend weddings and funerals.
Kent and Essex are connected by the Dartford Crossing - a transport hub for slave, drugs and arms traders as well killers and fugitives. The Crossing is the crucial piece of real estate in this bloody battle and the chilling setting for this hard-hitting, access-driven, insight into modern day gang warfare that takes the reader behind-the-scenes of a lethal struggle for domination.
'They're committing outrageous crimes on our manor. They're telling us they can operate wherever they want and we can't do a thing about it. - Steve Marchmont, Essex Gangster
For the past decade European gangsters have been fighting a turf war with homegrown British gangsters for control of the criminal badlands of London, Kent, Essex and throughout the UK. Many of these foreign gangs see Kent and Essex as a stepping-stone to the total domination of the British underworld.
In the two years since the Brexit referendum this war has intensified with European gangsters deliberately setting out to win and establish their businesses, both illicit and legit, before the UK leaves the EU.
The stakes are worth billions of pounds. On one side are the so-called 'New Kids on the Bloc': Eastern Europeans, who have muscled in and boast that within the next five years they will crush all others and dominate the British criminal underworld. On the other side is the 'Establishment': the old school, British based crime syndicates that have been working this area for decades. They own homes, send their kids to area schools, are known denizens of the local pubs and football pitches - attend weddings and funerals.
Kent and Essex are connected by the Dartford Crossing - a transport hub for slave, drugs and arms traders as well killers and fugitives. The Crossing is the crucial piece of real estate in this bloody battle and the chilling setting for this hard-hitting, access-driven, insight into modern day gang warfare that takes the reader behind-the-scenes of a lethal struggle for domination.
272 pages, Paperback
Published August 22, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 25, 2020
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.
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.
August 9, 2022
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.
December 19, 2025
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.
November 19, 2023
Fascinating insights into organised crime activities in the UK. Well-researched and believable!
August 12, 2025
An eye opening account of gangs in Britain.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews