Criminal communication network
Investigative sociogram of a covert organization — weighted command ties between the principal and lieutenants, directed courier and associate links to external contacts, and a weak tie that hints at an unconfirmed connection. The force-directed layout surfaces the command hierarchy and the bridging couriers.
For the intelligence analyst
Scenario
A link-analysis unit reconstructs a covert organization from intercept metadata. The sociogram is the standard deliverable: who talks to whom, how strongly, and in which direction — so the analyst can identify the principal, the lieutenants who insulate him, and the couriers who bridge the organization to outside suppliers.
Annotation key
<-> [weight: N]— a reciprocal, weighted tie; the heavierweight: 4command links betweenbossand the two lieutenants render thicker than theweight: 2peer link->— a directed contact (one party initiates), used for the courier and associate tasking lines-> [label: ...]— a directed tie carrying a role annotation (supplier,distributor)-.-— a weak/unconfirmed tie, drawn dashed:associate1 -.- courier1flags a suspected but unverified connection
How to read
Subject Alpha sits at the center, tied strongly to both lieutenants but never directly to the couriers or external contacts — the classic insulation pattern. Lieutenant 1 controls both couriers, each of whom reaches a single external contact, so the couriers are the bridging nodes whose removal would sever the outside supply. The dashed associate1 -.- courier1 tie is the lead worth developing: an unconfirmed cross-link between the two lieutenants' sub-networks.