Alleged ‘Rastrojos’ Throw Grenade, Kill Two
Suspected members of the Rastrojos criminal gang threw a grenade at a small store in Tumaco, a city along the Pacific Coast known for being a depot and launching pad for…
6 Navy Arrested for Connection to ‘Rastrojos’
Six members of Colombia's navy were arrested on charges of helping the criminal gang known as the Rastrojos, the Associated Press reported. The men were arrested on the…
37 Dead from Guerrilla Attacks in September
September has been one of the bloodiest months on record in recent years for Colombia's armed forces with guerrilla ambushes taking the lives of 37 security forces personnel, the majority…
10 Official Versions of the Capture of ‘Barbie’
Mexico's newspaper La Crónica says there are ten versions of how the drug trafficker and hitman Edgar Valdez Villareal, alias La Barbie, was captured in late August just outside…
Criminals Control Mercury Mines in Cordoba
Emerging Criminal Groups or BACRIM's are overrunning mercury mines in Córdoba and Antioquia, President Juan Manuel Santos announced. The mines are contaminated the environment, he added, stating that…
5 Arrested in Jalisco with C-4; Part of New Alliance
Five men, two of them ex-military, carrying explosives, weapons, flak jackets and T-shirts with the letters "MFG" were arrested in Jalisco, El Universal is reporting. The explosives are…
17 Dead in Honduran ‘Gang’ Massacre
Seventeen youths are dead after armed men stormed a shoe factory and shot them at point blank range in the embattled city of San Pedro Sula, in the northern part…
Maras Paralyze Transport in El Salvador
Gangs from the Mara Salvatrucha or MS-13 and the Barrio 18 shut down 40 percent to 60 percent of the public transport bus service in El Salvador, La Crónica…
El Universal: ‘Barbie’ Handed Himself In
In what has become almost a daily routine, the Mexican daily El Universal speculates that Edgar Valdez Villareal, alias "La Barbie," was not captured but handed himself in…
Calderón: Fight Against Cartels Could Take Years
During a TV interview, part of a blitz of interviews by Mexican President Felipe Calderón, the leader said his governments success in fighting drug cartels depended on the capacity of…
‘Barbie’ Negotiated Surrender?
Rumors are swirling that Edgar Valdez Villareal, alias "La Barbie," the former top hitman for the Beltrán Leyva Organization (BLO) who later formed his own drug trafficking organization, negotiated his surrender…
5 Peasants Killed in Border Area
Five peasant farmers were killed and two more remain missing in Peru near the Colombian and Brazilian borders, Peruvian Defense Minister Rafael Rey told EFE news agency. The…
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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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