Brazil

BRAZIL

Paraná, Brazil

ARMS TRAFFICKING / 4 MAR 2021

Paraná is a hub for drug trafficking. Vast quantities of cocaine and marijuana enter the state from Paraguay, via the Paraná River, and from Foz do Iguaçu.

Santa Catarina, Brazil

ARMS TRAFFICKING / 4 MAR 2021

Santa Catarina is a launchpad for cocaine destined for Europe and a transit point for marijuana and contraband headed to the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul and Uruguay.

Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

ARMS TRAFFICKING / 4 MAR 2021

Mato Grosso do Sul is among Brazil’s most strategic states for transnational crime.

Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

COCAINE / 4 MAR 2021

Strategically located between Argentina and Uruguay, Rio Grande do Sul is a hub for contraband and drug smuggling.

Brazil Profile

BRAZIL / SEPTEMBER 8, 2020

Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, has seen some important security advances in recent years, taking dozens of communities in Rio de Janeiro from criminal gangs through its innovative UPP security…

Escritório do Crime

BRAZIL GROUPS / 15 FEB 2021

Escritório do Crime (Office of Crime) is one of the largest and most powerful militia groups in Brazil’s second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro.

Marcelo Fernando Pinheiro Veiga, alias “Piloto”

BRAZIL PERSONALITIES / APRIL 13, 2020

Marcelo “Piloto” Pinheiro was considered one of the Brazilian government’s most sought-after drug traffickers until 2017. He is believed to have once been the second-in-command of the Red Command (Comando…

Gilberto Aparecido Dos Santos, alias ‘Fuminho’

BRAZIL PERSONALITIES / APRIL 13, 2020

Gilberto Aparecido Dos Santos, alias “Fuminho,” is one of the leaders of Brazil’s largest and most powerful criminal organization, the First Capital Command (Primeiro Comando da Capital – PCC).

Family of the North – FDN

BRAZIL GROUPS / MARCH 5, 2020

Family of the North (Familia do Norte - FDN) has long been Brazil’s third-largest criminal group, with a strong presence in northern Brazil but not matching the nationwide presence of…

Marcos Willians Herbas Camacho, alias ‘Marcola’

BRAZIL / MARCH 25, 2020

Marcos Willians Herbas Camacho, known by the aliases “Marcola” and “Playboy,” has been the top leader of Brazil’s biggest and most powerful criminal organization, the First Capital Command (Primeiro Comando…

Amigos dos Amigos

AMIGOS DOS AMIGOS / 2018-03-30

Amigos dos Amigos is a criminal group based in Brazil’s second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro. The organization was formed in the late 1990s by ex-members of the powerful Red Command…

Pure Third Command

BRAZIL / 2018-04-26 21:52:21

The Pure Third Command (Terceiro Comando Puro) is one of the most powerful criminal groups in Brazil’s second largest city, Rio de Janeiro. Its origins can be traced back to…

First Capital Command – PCC

BRAZIL / MARCH 9, 2020

The First Capital Command (Primeiro Comando da Capital – PCC) was inspired by the Red Command (Comando Vermelho). Both criminal organizations were formed by prisoners as self-protection groups in Brazil's…

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InSight Crime Events – Border Crime: The Northern Triangle and Tri-Border Area

ARGENTINA / 25 JAN 2021

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…

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InSight Crime’s ‘Memo Fantasma’ Investigation Wins Simón Bolívar National Journalism Prize

COLOMBIA / 20 NOV 2020

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…

ANALYSIS

InSight Crime – From Uncovering Organized Crime to Finding What Works

COLOMBIA / 12 NOV 2020

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. …

ANALYSIS

InSight Crime – Ten Years of Investigating Organized Crime in the Americas

FEATURED / 2 NOV 2020

In early 2009, Steven Dudley was in Medellín, Colombia. His assignment: speak to a jailed paramilitary leader in the Itagui prison, just south of the city. Following his interview inside…

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