In law enforcement, a sting operation is a deceptive operation designed to catch a person attempting to commit a crime. A typical sting will have an undercover law enforcement officer, detective, or co-operative member of the public play a role as criminal partner or potential victim and go along with a suspect's actions to gather evidence of the suspect's wrongdoing. Mass media journalists have used sting operations to record video and broadcast to expose criminal activity. [1]
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The most basic type of sting operation in drug trafficking cases involves an undercover agent posing as a drug buyer. A variant on the sting operation when undercover agent poses as a seller rather than as a buyer is sometimes called a reverse sting operation. [2]
Police informants used in sting operations are frequently asked to “wear a wire” (being fitted with concealed recording equipment). [3]
In case of sting operations, during ensuing litigation a defense attorney often attempt to assert an “entrapment” defense which asserts that law enforcement induced a person to commit a crime that he or she would otherwise have been unlikely to commit. But the mere use of undercover agents does not mean entrapment. Some believe they can protect themselves by asking a suspected undercover agent “Are you a cop?” However, such person will, if anything, impair his criminal defense, because such a question shows a consciousness of guilt. [4]
Sting operations are common in many countries, such as the United States, [5] but they are not permitted in some countries, such as Sweden. [6] There are prohibitions on conducting certain types of sting operations, such as in the Philippines, where it is illegal for law enforcers to pose as drug dealers to apprehend buyers of illegal drugs. [7] In countries like France, Germany, and Italy, sting operations are relatively rare. [8]