Villains taken in hand by bishops (6)

I believe the answer is:

crooks

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'taken in hand by bishops' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

I don't understand how the rest of the clue works.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for crooks that I've seen before include "Cheats" , "taken in hand by bishops" , "shepherds lay hold of" , "Rustlers" , "Bad guys" .)

I've seen this clue in The Globe and Mail.

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