Introduction

As a counter to the current punitive inefficiency of the transnational Palermo Protocol, this chapter introduces the core thesis that the kind of aggravated sex trafficking associated with northern Albanian criminal gangs should be identified as an international and jus cogens crime. It also introduces numerous corollary themes as part of taking highly interdisciplinary approach that combines a doctrinal analysis of the Rome Statute, legal methods of the past, and forensic cultural anthropology rooted in neutralisation theory. It is a victim-friendly approach, and it primarily considers Albanian sex trafficker attitudes and actions to explore the nature of their crimes and what that means for potentially prosecuting the crime of sex trafficking in the international criminal justice system.