The Birth of the MS13's Mexico Program

INVESTIGATIONS / 15 FEB 2022

On March 2, 2021, El Salvador police announced an unexpected arrest: that of Hugo Armando Quinteros Mineros, alias “Flaco.” His capture took authorities by surprise. For they believed Flaco was…

Open positions: Media and Public Relations Professional / English Language Editor

WORK WITH US / 15 FEB 2022

InSight Crime is looking for a media and public relations professional and a senior English editor, preferably based in Latin America…

NEWS

Booming Mexico Resort Town of Puerto Vallarta is Hostage to CJNG

EXTORTION / 22 FEB 2022

Recent US sanctions against an alleged Jalisco Cartel operative have revealed that the powerful Mexican group is using the resort town of Puerto Vallarta to process drug cash through nightclubs,…

NEWS

Top Ex-Colombian Officers' Trafficking Case Recalls Past Abuses

COLOMBIA / 21 FEB 2022

Three retired Colombian army commanders have been accused of belonging to a criminal network that served the Urabeños drug clan, in a case illustrating how the highest ranks of Colombia's…

NEWS

Operation Black Tide: The Voyage of a Drug Sub Across the Atlantic

COCAINE / 21 FEB 2022

When authorities in Spain captured the first known drug submarine to cross the Atlantic, questions soon surfaced about how such a journey could be possible.

NEWS

Cocaine Flows from the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico

CARIBBEAN / 18 FEB 2022

Dominican authorities recently intercepted a cocaine-laden speedboat destined for Puerto Rico – the latest in a series of maritime seizures showing a flourishing drug trade between the Dominican Republic and…

NEWS

Argentina Redraws Marijuana Maps After Massive Seizure

ARGENTINA / 18 FEB 2022

A colossal seizure of more than 10,000 cannabis plants in the western provinces of Salta and Jujuy in Argentina provides evidence that marijuana growers are trying to spread the illicit…

NEWS

'Invisible' Drug Trafficker Joins Forces with Former Enemies in Colombia

AUC / 17 FEB 2022

An "invisible" Colombian drug lord whose criminal history dates to the country's former paramilitary army has been revealed to have set up drug routes with dissident guerrilla fighters, showing how…

NEWS

Bodies Hanging from Bridges - Where Mexico Led, Ecuador Follows

COCAINE / 17 FEB 2022

The discovery of two bodies hanging from a bridge in Ecuador may be the starkest sign yet of the country’s accelerated spiral into violence, including copying the worst excesses seen…

NEWS

Targeted Killings: The Favored Modus Operandi of Paraguay's Drug Gangs

HOMICIDES / 16 FEB 2022

Brazen killings by hired gunmen have not only shaken Paraguay recently but shined a light on the growing use of this method by drug gangs when targeting their rivals.

NEWS

Former Honduras President Accused of Drug Conspiracy That Moved 500 Tons of Cocaine

COCAINE / 15 FEB 2022

With the arrest of former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández on drug charges, US prosecutors have brought down a powerful figure once considered a US ally, but who later emerged…

NEWS

Safehouses, Bodyguards and Fake ID - Panama's Top Drug Trafficker on the Run

BAGDAD / 15 FEB 2022

The leader of Panama’s largest drug trafficking group has been arrested in Costa Rica and is set to be extradited to the United States, although this is unlikely to heavily…

Featured Reporting and Analysis

When strolling through Las Margaritas, a neighborhood of over 15,000 people in the city of Soyapango, El Salvador, crossing paths with the MS13 is all but assured. There, almost all…

EL SALVADOR / 25 JAN 2022

In 2021, most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean experienced a marked increase in murders. Resurgent violence was to be expected after some of the world’s strictest COVID-19 lockdowns…

ARGENTINA / 1 FEB 2022

On March 2, 2021, El Salvador police announced an unexpected arrest: that of Hugo Armando Quinteros Mineros, alias “Flaco.” His capture took authorities by surprise. For they believed Flaco was…

EL SALVADOR / 15 FEB 2022

Where Honduras ends, there are no borders, no guards, no gate post. This is where a nation vanishes with no fanfare.

HONDURAS / 19 JAN 2022

Prediction of the criminal dynamics for 2022 is even harder than most years, as it involves predicting the march of coronavirus. Organized crime does not exist in a bubble.

BRAZIL / 31 DEC 2021

In this run-down neighborhood in Guatemala City, the Mara Salvatrucha (MS13) does not exist. And yet, there are still a host of emeeses, as the gang's members are known.

GUATEMALA / 7 FEB 2022

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Carlos Luis Revette, alias 'El Koki'

VENEZUELA / 23 APR 2021

Carlos Luis Revette, alias “El Koki,” is one of Venezuela’s most wanted criminals and leader of the “megabanda" that controls the Cota 905 district to the southwest of Caracas.

Wilexis Alexander Acevedo Monasterios, alias 'Wilexis'

VENEZUELA / 11 JAN 2021

Wilexis Alexander Acevedo Monasterios has led the gang which bears his name since at least 2017. With between 150 and 200 people in its ranks, the Wilexis gang controls the…

MS13

EL SALVADOR / 16 JUN 2011

The Mara Salvatrucha, or MS13, is perhaps the most notorious street gang in the Western Hemisphere. While it has its origins in the poor, refugee-laden neighborhoods of 1980s Los Angeles,…

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About InSight Crime

WORK WITH US

Open positions: Media and Public Relations Professional / English Language Editor

15 FEB 2022

InSight Crime is looking for a media and public relations professional and a senior English editor, preferably based in Latin America…

THE ORGANIZATION

Guatemala Social Insecurity Investigation Makes Front Page News

10 DEC 2021

InSight Crime’s latest investigation into a case of corruption within Guatemala's social security agency linked to the deaths of patients with kidney disease made waves in…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela El Dorado Investigation Makes Headlines

3 DEC 2021

InSight Crime's investigation into the trafficking of illegal gold in Venezuela's Amazon region generated impact on both social media and in the press. Besides being republished and mentioned by several…

THE ORGANIZATION

Gender and Investigative Techniques Focus of Workshops

26 NOV 2021

On November 23-24, InSight Crime conducted a workshop called “How to Cover Organized Crime: Investigation Techniques and A Focus on Gender.” The session convened reporters and investigators from a dozen…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Names Two New Board Members

19 NOV 2021

In recent weeks, InSight Crime added two new members to its board. Joy Olson is the former executive director of the Washington Office on Latin America…