The present study is an analysis of a Czech political corruption network known as the Rath affair reconstructed with publicly available data. We argue that for the study of criminal networks it is fruitful to follow a multiplex approach, i.e., to distinguish several interdependent network dimensions and study how they are interrelated. Relational elements in corruption are identified, and we propose three dimensions that are essential for understanding the Rath network: pre-existing ties (e.g., marriage or co-membership of the same party), resource transfer (e.g., bribing), and collaboration (e.g., communication). The aim of the study was threefold. We aimed to examine if the network exhibits the core/periphery structure, to investigate the multiplex structure of the network by assessing the overlap of the main dimensions of the network, and to determine the central and multiplex actors while considering the differentiation of centrality according to the three network dimensions. The core/periphery model appears to have a perfect fit to the aggregated network, leading to a four-block adjacency matrix. Studying the frequency of ties in these blocks shows that collaboration ties are present in all the blocks, while resource transfer ties are mainly located between the core and periphery, and pre-existing ties are rare generally. We also identify central actors, none of which are strategically positioned, occupying more visible positions instead. The majority of actors display strong multiplexity in the composition of their own ties. In the conclusion the potential usefulness of multiplex descriptive measures and of mixed methods approaches, implications of our results for trust incriminal networks, and potential merits of analytical sociology approach are discussed.

中文翻译：

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腐败网络中的结构、多重性和中心性：捷克拉特事件

本研究分析了一个名为 Rath 事件的捷克政治腐败网络，该网络使用公开数据重建。我们认为，对于犯罪网络的研究，遵循多重方法是富有成效的，即区分几个相互依赖的网络维度并研究它们如何相互关联。确定了腐败中的关系要素，我们提出了理解 Rath 网络必不可少的三个维度：预先存在的关系（例如，同一政党的婚姻或共同成员）、资源转移（例如，贿赂）和合作（例如，通信）。这项研究的目的是三重的。我们旨在检查网络是否表现出核心/外围结构，通过评估网络主要维度的重叠来研究网络的多重结构，并在考虑根据三个网络维度区分中心性的同时确定中心和多重参与者。核心/外围模型似乎与聚合网络完美契合，从而产生了四块邻接矩阵。研究这些区块的联系频度表明，所有的区块都存在协作联系，而资源转移联系主要位于核心和外围之间，预先存在的联系一般很少见。我们还确定了核心参与者，它们都没有处于战略位置，而是占据了更明显的位置。大多数参与者在他们自己的关系构成中表现出很强的多重性。总之，多重描述性措施和混合方法方法的潜在用途，