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Criminal Actors
Histories and profiles of organized crime groups, insurgencies, street gangs, vigilantes and the criminal actors that lead them.
Lempira, Honduras
ELITES AND CRIME
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16 FEB 2021
Lempira is not a major hub for organized criminal activity but is nonetheless an important transit point for illicit narcotics…
Honduras Profile
HONDURAS
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FEBRUARY 15, 2021
Honduras, long one of the poorest countries in Latin America, is now also among the most violent and crime-ridden. The…
Escritório do Crime
BRAZIL GROUPS
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AUGUST 13, 2021
Escritório do Crime is one of the largest and most powerful militia groups in Brazil’s second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro.
Chiquimula, Guatemala
COCAINE
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22 JAN 2021
Chiquimula is a transit point and hub for drug trafficking. It also has marijuana production and a vibrant contraband and…
Izabal, Guatemala
GEOGRAPHIC PROFILES
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22 JAN 2021
Izabal is one of the most important transit hubs for cocaine being smuggled from Honduras into Guatemala by land, as…
Zacapa, Guatemala
GEOGRAPHIC PROFILES
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22 JAN 2021
In the department of Zacapa, long a transit point for cocaine and marijuana bound for Mexico and the US, drug…
Jutiapa, Guatemala
GEOGRAPHIC PROFILES
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22 JAN 2021
Jutiapa is a transit point for narcotics shipments and a hotspot for illegal firearm possession. Criminal groups smuggle illicit weapons…
Border Security Colectivo
VENEZUELA GROUPS
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SEPTEMBER 22, 2021
The Border Security Colectivo (Colectivo de Seguridad Fronteriza – CSF) is a state-supported irregular militia group based in the Colombian…
Cartel of the Suns
CARTEL OF THE SUNS
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MAY 14, 2022
The “Cartel of the Suns” (Cartel de los Soles) is the term used to describe the shadowy groups inside Venezuela’s…
Wilexis Alexander Acevedo Monasterios, alias 'Wilexis'
VENEZUELA
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JANUARY 20, 2023
Wilexis Alexander Acevedo Monasterios has led the gang which bears his name since at least 2017. With between 150 and…
The Meleán
VENEZUELA GROUPS
/
8 JAN 2021
For decades, the Meleán crime family was one of the most powerful criminal groups in Venezuela. Established by Antonio Jesús…
Fuerza Anti-Unión
MEXICO GROUPS
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2020-11-13
La Fuerza Anti-Unión, which battles La Union Tepito for territories in Mexico City, has grown rapidly.
Latest
Chiapas Bleeds as CJNG, Sinaloa Cartel Fight for Guatemala Trafficking Routes
DISPLACEMENT
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2 JUN 2023
Clashes between the Sinaloa Cartel and the CJNG in Chiapas, close to the Mexico-Guatemala border have displacee of thousands.
DataInSights: The Rise and Fall of Ransom Kidnappings in Argentina
ARGENTINA
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1 JUN 2023
Ransom kidnapping became a lucrative criminal economy in Argentina. But since 2015, they've nosedived. Why?…
3 Takeaways From the Mexico Peace Index 2023
EXTORTION
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31 MAY 2023
A new report has found that organized crime groups are overwhelmingly to blame for violence in Mexico, and the CJNG plays an oversized role.
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