The Colombian guerrillas have won a battle against the Venezuelan military in the state of Apure. But they will never win the war. Nevertheless, the fighting made one thing clear:…
The Battle for Apure: Chavismo and the ex-FARC
INVESTIGATIONS
/ 13 OCT 2021
Colombian rebel groups long ago set up shop in Venezuela, seeking sanctuary beyond the reach of the US-back Colombian military. The Chavista regime welcomed them as allies against an “imperialist”…
NEWS
How Mexico's Cartels Use Video Games to Recruit Children
CARTEL DE JALISCO
/
15 OCT 2021
Mexican criminal groups have hit on a new way to recruit vulnerable young people into their ranks: reaching out to them while they play video games.
NEWS
The Coast of Sucre - Venezuela's Most Dangerous Place for Piracy
CARIBBEAN
/
15 OCT 2021
Merchants travelling to Trinidad and Tobago, fishing vessels, even the occasional tourist – all are tempting targets for pirates off Venezuela’s northern state of Sucre. …
NEWS
Dissident FARC Guerrillas Repeatedly Try to Assassinate Colombia Governor
COCAINE
/
14 OCT 2021
The governor of Colombia's central department of Meta has survived two back-to-back assassination attempts, a rare case of a continued targeted assault against a senior public official by Colombian guerrillas.
NEWS
The Intimate Relationship Between Cocaine and Illegal Timber in Brazil's Amazon
BRAZIL
/
14 OCT 2021
For some time now, research has highlighted the significant volume of illegal logging in the Brazilian timber market and its relationship to deforestation in the Amazon rainforest.
NEWS
Phone Extortion in Mexico Continuing to Rise Despite Low Success Rate
EXTORTION
/
13 OCT 2021
A new report claims the success rate of phone extortion is dropping in Mexico, but the fluid nature of this crime makes it difficult to prove.
NEWS
Yacu Kallpa: Illegal Timber and Impunity in Peru
ENVIRONMENTAL CRIME
/
12 OCT 2021
Six years after investigators in Peru took down a massive timber trafficking operation that shipped millions of dollars’ worth of illegal hardwood, more than 90 people have been indicted and…
NEWS
Weapons Trafficking Rife on Mexico's Social Media
ARMS TRAFFICKING
/
12 OCT 2021
Arms trafficking in Mexico has turned to digital mediums that offer both broad visibility and anonymity to an ever-increasing flow of weapons into the country.
NEWS
Contraband Chinese Cigarettes Take Latin America by Storm
CHINA AND CRIME
/
11 OCT 2021
Contraband Chinese cigarettes are pouring into Latin America, infiltrating old smuggling routes and threatening longstanding criminal empires.
NEWS
US Sanctions Reveal CJNG’s Grip on Mexico Port To Move Fentanyl
FENTANYL
/
8 OCT 2021
The United States has sanctioned four suspected members of Mexico’s powerful CJNG cartel, alleging that they controlled drug operations at a Pacific port that is a crucial entry point for…
NEWS
How Contraband Tomatoes are Hurting Paraguay's Economy
ARGENTINA
/
8 OCT 2021
A shipment of contraband tomatoes seized in Paraguay…
Featured Reporting and Analysis
On April 23, 2021, two Venezuelan military helicopters landed near the town of La Victoria in the border state of Apure filled with soldiers dispatched to hunt dissident Colombian guerrillas.
EX-FARC MAFIA
/
13 OCT 2021
It was so simple once. The Gulf Cartel and its ancestors maintained control of Tamaulipas for eight decades.
FEATURED
/
6 OCT 2021
Ecuador is reeling from its worst-ever prison massacre in Guayaquil but the factors that led to this situation could well be replicated in other countries across the region.
ECUADOR
/
30 SEP 2021
The fighting that erupted in the Venezuelan state of Apure in early 2021 was on the surface a classic guerrilla conflict.
EX-FARC MAFIA
/
13 OCT 2021
The photos showed five dead bodies laid out in the dirt, each with a gun or grenade close to an outstretched hand. The official report stated these were guerrillas who…
ELITES AND CRIME
/
13 OCT 2021
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InDepth
States of Emergency in Belize - Cure or Addiction?
BELIZE
/ 17 SEP 2021
Memo Fantasma Wants Out of Prison in Colombia
COCAINE
/ 29 SEP 2021
About InSight Crime
THE ORGANIZATION
InSight Crime Tackles Illegal Fishing
15 OCT 2021
In October, InSight Crime and American University’s Center for Latin American and Latino Studies (CLALS) began a year-long project on illegal, unreported, unregulated (IUU) fishing in…
THE ORGANIZATION
InSight Crime Featured in Handbook for Reporting on Organized Crime
8 OCT 2021
In late September, the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) published an excerpt of its forthcoming guide on reporting organized crime in Indonesia.
THE ORGANIZATION
Probing Organized Crime in Haiti
1 OCT 2021
InSight Crime has made it a priority to investigate organized crime in Haiti, where an impotent state is reeling after the July assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, coupled with an…
THE ORGANIZATION
Emergency First Aid in Hostile Environments
24 SEP 2021
At InSight Crime's annual treat, we ramped up hostile environment and emergency first aid training for our 40-member staff, many of whom conduct on-the-ground investigations in dangerous corners of the region.
THE ORGANIZATION
Series on Environmental Crime in the Amazon Generates Headlines
17 SEP 2021
InSight Crime and the Igarapé Institute have been delighted at the response to our joint investigation into environmental crimes in the Colombian Amazon. Coverage of our chapters dedicated to illegal mining…