as in gangsterism
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Recent Examples of racketeering
Literary Hub, 9 Feb. 2026
Mearan had denied trafficking allegations Mearan faced 18 charges spanning human trafficking, racketeering and compelling and promoting prostitution.
—David Ferrara, Cincinnati Enquirer, 6 Feb. 2026
Doe’s legal team is approaching the group as a business enterprise and pursuing racketeering and RICO claims, among the case’s 21 counts.
—Jane Borden, Rolling Stone, 5 Feb. 2026
LaForte now faces roughly eight to 10 more years behind bars, based on federal sentencing guidelines, after pleading guilty to racketeering conspiracy, extortion, witness retaliation and other crimes in Brooklyn Federal Court.
—John Annese, New York Daily News, 4 Feb. 2026
Two Sparta brothers have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms following a years-long investigation into a sophisticated lottery fraud and racketeering scheme spanning more than a dozen Georgia counties.
—Zachary Bynum, CBS News, 2 Feb. 2026
Known as the Mirzoyan-Terdjanian crime ring, defendants received one- to three-year sentences for racketeering, health care fraud and money laundering.
—William La Jeunesse, FOXNews.com, 30 Jan. 2026
In 2020, George Esparza, a special aide to Huizar, pleaded guilty to a racketeering conspiracy charge involving billionaire developer Wei Huang, who sought to build a 77-story skyscraper in Huizar’s district.
—Daily News, 29 Jan. 2026
After serving about 16 years in federal prison for racketeering, Villalba ended up living in a collection of tents along the railroad tracks that run beneath the 91 Freeway.
—Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan. 2026
Noun
Though Still been indicted on seven counts, including criminal racketeering and other felonies, unbelievably, Governor Brian Kemp is allowing Still to continue to represent my district.
—Literary Hub, 9 Feb. 2026
Mearan had denied trafficking allegations Mearan faced 18 charges spanning human trafficking, racketeering and compelling and promoting prostitution.
—David Ferrara, Cincinnati Enquirer, 6 Feb. 2026
Doe’s legal team is approaching the group as a business enterprise and pursuing racketeering and RICO claims, among the case’s 21 counts.
—Jane Borden, Rolling Stone, 5 Feb. 2026
LaForte now faces roughly eight to 10 more years behind bars, based on federal sentencing guidelines, after pleading guilty to racketeering conspiracy, extortion, witness retaliation and other crimes in Brooklyn Federal Court.
—John Annese, New York Daily News, 4 Feb. 2026
Two Sparta brothers have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms following a years-long investigation into a sophisticated lottery fraud and racketeering scheme spanning more than a dozen Georgia counties.
—Zachary Bynum, CBS News, 2 Feb. 2026
Known as the Mirzoyan-Terdjanian crime ring, defendants received one- to three-year sentences for racketeering, health care fraud and money laundering.
—William La Jeunesse, FOXNews.com, 30 Jan. 2026
In 2020, George Esparza, a special aide to Huizar, pleaded guilty to a racketeering conspiracy charge involving billionaire developer Wei Huang, who sought to build a 77-story skyscraper in Huizar’s district.
—Daily News, 29 Jan. 2026
After serving about 16 years in federal prison for racketeering, Villalba ended up living in a collection of tents along the railroad tracks that run beneath the 91 Freeway.
—Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for racketeering
Verb
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Bandit gangs control entire districts, extorting protection money from communities in cash or kind, killing those that resist.—
Obi Anyadike,
semafor.com,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Instead of extorting money to decrypt data in a company’s own system, an attacker can just threaten to release sensitive data if the ransom isn’t paid.—
Megan Poinski,
Forbes.com,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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To do otherwise would have been malpractice and malfeasance.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
7 Feb. 2026
-
To guard against runners and other forms of malfeasance, Manteris maintained a cutting-edge surveillance system.—
Dan Piepenbring,
New Yorker,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But when a mysterious stranger begins blackmailing Neve, she is forced to compromise every legal, moral and ethical obligation to gain an acquittal — or else risk her dark secrets being exposed.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
13 Feb. 2026
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The theory that Epstein was blackmailing his rich contacts was also always based on speculation.—
Gilad Edelman,
The Atlantic,
7 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Brain imaging studies of criminality going back to 2009 have suggested that damage to a swath of white matter called the right uncinate fasciculus is somehow involved when people commit violent acts.—
Christopher M. Filley,
The Conversation,
3 Feb. 2026
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The government, along with much of purple and red America, pound the message that ICE in Minnesota is all about state corruption and criminality.—
Ed Bok Lee,
Literary Hub,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Guevara and two colleagues, then-detectives Michael Mason and Ernest Halvorson, then orchestrated a frame-up by coercing one witness to identify Rios by beating him with a phone book and flashlight, and another by threatening to charge him with obstruction, according to the plaintiffs’ allegations.—
Jason Meisner,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Feb. 2026
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However, this kind of rethinking of coverage is not about coercing people to accept worse care in exchange for money.—
Jared Rhoads,
STAT,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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British police raided two properties linked to Mandelson on Friday as part of an investigation into misconduct in public office.—
Billy Stockwell,
CNN Money,
9 Feb. 2026
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The Proctor case could prove a test of Hochman’s commitment to prosecuting police misconduct cases.—
Richard Winton,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Now the president is again pitching the idea that wresting control of Greenland away from Denmark could solve the problem.—
Josh Funk,
Fortune,
11 Jan. 2026
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Hopes for both lower interest rates and a solid economy have helped other areas of the stock market climb recently, wresting leadership away from the Big Tech and AI stocks that dominated the market for years.—
Stan Choe,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The police also said that administrative proceedings had been initiated for public drunkenness and minor hooliganism.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
23 Jan. 2026
-
The film focused on an American who got involved in the brutal world of British football hooliganism.—
Meredith Wilshere,
PEOPLE,
11 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Racketeering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/racketeering. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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