Women, Youth Primed for Gang Recruitment in Venezuela
A new report from a Venezuela non-governmental organization working on migration issues shows that Colombia's criminal groups have been recruiting Venezuelans into their ranks at an accelerated rate.
4 Takeaways So Far From the US Trial Against ‘El Chapo’
The US trial of one of the most high-profile and prolific drug traffickers the world has ever seen is in full swing, and has been filled with explosive allegations of…
What's Standing in the Way of Police Reform in Mexico?
Politicians and officials in Mexico have promised to reform the police for years, but the force continues to face the same struggles in curtailing the growing threat posed by organized…
Venezuela Police Hide Killings Behind Claims of Resisting Authority
A recent report concluded that, in Venezuela, government security forces were responsible for 37 percent of the homicides that occurred in capital city Caracas between 2017 and 2018.
10 Years of the Mérida Initiative: Violence and Corruption
The Mérida Initiative celebrates its tenth anniversary this year. Yet since it began providing funding for security in Mexico, problems to do with violence and institutionalized corruption have worsened,…
Venezuela and Turkey Unite to Profit from Amazonian "Blood Gold"
Dozens of massacres and a sprawling organized crime structure are behind a recent alliance between the governments of Venezuela and Turkey to extract, refine and market the "blood gold" that…
The Corrupt Alliance of Two Former Presidents in El Salvador
Two former presidents of El Salvador formed a political alliance to carry out clandestine operations that attacked opponents with classified intelligence information, a new investigation has revealed. The operations were…
The Funes and Saca Tapes in El Salvador: A Plot Revealed
Everyone in this room, in front of a bar with a glass of blue ribbon whiskey in hand, was prosecuted, convicted or ended up a fugitive. Everyone except Herbert Saca,…
Soccer Corruption Hits Peru With Leading Arrest
The arrest of businessman and former president of the Peruvian Soccer Federation, Edwin Oviedo, opens a new chapter in the profitable relationship between soccer and corruption in Latin America.
FARC Dissidents Growing Faster Than Colombia Can Count
Two Colombian intelligence reports, published three months apart, show contradictions in the number of ex-FARC Mafia and their rate of expansion, although they both agree these splinter groups are growing.
Morales Orders CICIG Agents To Leave Guatemala
Guatemala President Jimmy Morales wants to deal a final blow in his political war against the international anti-corruption commission that has been glued to him since he began his term.
Marielle Franco Insights Show Grim Banality of Brazil Violence
New information about the murder of a Rio de Janeiro city councilor may finally bring her killers to justice, but this provides little cause for long-term optimism.
About InSight Crime
Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua Becomes Truly Transnational
This week, InSight Crime published a deep dive into the total control that Venezuelan mega-gang, Tren de Aragua, has over the lives of those it smuggles between Venezuela and Chile…
Turkish Traffickers Delivering Latin American Cocaine to Persian Gulf
Last week, InSight Crime published the second half of an investigation piecing together the emerging role of Turkish cocaine traffickers in supplying Russia and the Persian Gulf, which are among…
Turkey as a Lynchpin in European Cocaine Pipeline
InSight Crime is extending its investigation into the cocaine pipeline to Europe, and tracking the growing connections between Latin American drug traffickers and European criminal organizations. This led us to…
Memo Fantasma Coverage Gets Worldwide Attention
Guillermo Acevedo, the former Colombian drug lord and paramilitary commander better known as Memo Fantasma, may soon be allowed to leave prison. Since first revealing the identity of Memo Fantasma…
Who Are Memo Fantasma and Sergio Roberto de Carvalho?
Inside the criminal career of Memo Fantasma In March 2020, InSight Crime revealed the identity and whereabouts of Memo Fantasma, a paramilitary commander and drug trafficker living in…
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