As stated in the section on culture, the criminal underworld on Ortlimar IV, and indeed, the entire Ortlimar system, is dominated by Venson Jaax. He runs the Lopar Syndicate, which is the largest single criminal organization in-system.
Lopar has its hands in nearly all the criminal activities available, from extortion and thuggery through to the monopolistic shipping company which controls the trade from Neela's spaceport to the planet surface. It is not threatened by the smaller existing criminal rings (having eliminated any competition), and they tend to co-exist in peace, so long as any given smaller operation doesn't get too big.
Lopar also supports some of the political personalities in the system, through monetary contributions and favors. This tends to blur the line between politics and crime, as is the case so often. The main brunt of this system is borne by the poor in the cities and to a lesser extent, the farmers in the outlying regions.
Lopar is probably involved in the Mindstim (also known as Brain and Smarty on the street) addiction sweeping the main cities at the moment; Mindstim is a drug which can be snorted, smoked or injected with subtle differences in effect, and which gives the user the sense that they're operating with increased mental capacity, in addition to an enormous rush. It's horribly addictive, and degrades the user's brain matter over time. Most beings who become addicted end up slobbering mental cases after about 2 standard years. Mindstim is available for about 10-20 credits a hit, with the effects lasting for as long as half an hour. The user will enter withdrawal within 2 hours of the onset of effects, usually prompting another hit.
Venson Jaax has been involved in three high-profile investigations, but has come out clean each time, prompting a certain amount of argument in parliament, as well as the introduction of two judicial reform measures, both of which have ultimately failed.
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Created by Ian Johnston. Questions? Please mail me.