Detective Sergeant David Lake

Phoenix P.D., Ret. | CEO, Center on Shadow Economics

David Lake is a retired Detective Sergeant and 30-year veteran of the Phoenix Police Department, specializing in organized commercial crimes.  In that capacity, he conducted or directly supervised thousands of complex investigations across dozens of industries.  This work led to the seizure of over 100 million dollars in cash and contraband from a wide range of criminal organizations.  

During this time, David also owned several businesses in the retail and service sectors.  He coupled his business experience and police expertise to conduct unique research with the Department of Justice and Arizona State University. This research focused on the business of crime, dubbed the Shadow Economy.  Through research, David documented how shadow economy crime damages communities and contributes to urban decay. This groundbreaking work, coupled with David’s real-world experience, has made him an internationally recognized expert on shadow economic crime.  As such, he has presented at hundreds of events to police, public, and private sector leaders from over 80 countries around the world.

Now retired from public service, David is the CEO of the Center on Shadow Economics.  He works with private and public sector leaders in this role, building partnerships and investigatory capacity to understand and engage the shadow economy in communities worldwide.