Intercepts Show How Brazil Police Extort PCC
“Plata o Plomo” is an overused phrase to describe the way criminals threaten officials and civilians to ensure compliance with their wishes. In one Brazilian case, it seems more appropriately…
While Taking Paraguay-Brazil Border, PCC Tries to Control Its Own
On June 10, 2016, Jorge Rafaat was driving his armored Hummer when he pulled up to a stop light in central Pedro Juan Caballero, a Paraguayan city at the border…
Court Case Paints Picture of Disorganization in Brazil’s PCC
The PCC is often described as Brazil’s most potent criminal gang, but a recent case against it paints a picture that belies the reputation of the group as a strict,…
How PCC ‘Discipline’ Helped Gang Control the Underworld
On November 14, 2016, about 12 p.m., Carlos Magno de Souza was driving along the asphalt streets of Peruíbe, São Paulo, past the single-story houses that dot the seaside city…
PCC: A Prison from Which There Is No Escape
It was a Tuesday night, January 14, 2020, after “free time” when prison authorities found his body.
PCC Investigation: Introduction and Major Findings
It was August 31, 1993, and the sun was shining when eight men entered a makeshift soccer pitch in the middle of the Taubaté prison.
What are the Signs a Latin American Prison Is Working or Not?
As part of his work in human rights, transitional justice and prison reform, Michael Reed has been inside dozens of prisons across the Americas. Reed, a dual US-Colombian citizen, is…
3 Reasons Why US is Epicenter for Big Cat Breeding, Trading
Netflix’s “Tiger King” fixated our gaze on the outlandish antics of Exotic Joe, but if you squint your eyes in just the right way, you could catch a glimpse of…
A Guatemala Drug Trafficking Chapter Ends in the US
A judge lowered the sentence of a convicted Guatemalan drug trafficker in a US court on February 22, just weeks after US federal authorities released another convicted Guatemalan trafficker from…
For Informant, a Treacherous Road to Justice in El Salvador
Even under the best of circumstances, there are few incentives to become a cooperating witness in an extortion case in El Salvador. And, as one witness has found out, participation…
El Salvador’s Jailed Gang Mediator: ‘I feel defrauded’
The former leftist guerrilla and ex-congressman Raúl Mijango is jailed and facing 20 years in prison for extortion -- one of two crimes derived from his role in the gang…
InSight Crime Podcast: The Good Student
In this week's podcast, we finish our series on illegal campaign financing in Guatemala, focusing on current President Jimmy Morales.
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InSight Crime is looking for a full-time strategic communications manager. This person needs to be able to work in a fast-paced world of daily news, high-profile investigations, national and international…
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InSight Crime Events – Border Crime: The Northern Triangle and Tri-Border Area
Through several rounds of extensive field investigations, our researchers have analyzed and mapped out the main illicit economies and criminal groups present in 39 border departments spread across the six countries of study – the Northern Triangle trio of Guatemala, Honduras, and El…
InSight Crime’s ‘Memo Fantasma’ Investigation Wins Simón Bolívar National Journalism Prize
The staff at InSight Crime was awarded the prestigious Simón Bolívar national journalism prize in Colombia for its two-year investigation into the drug trafficker known as “Memo Fantasma,” which was…
InSight Crime – From Uncovering Organized Crime to Finding What Works
This project began 10 years ago as an effort to address a problem: the lack of daily coverage, investigative stories and analysis of organized crime in the Americas. …
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