Criminal Actors

Histories and profiles of organized crime groups, insurgencies, street gangs, vigilantes and the criminal actors that lead them.

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Lempira, Honduras

ELITES AND CRIME / 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 / 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 / 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 / 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 / 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 / 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 / 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 / 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 / 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 / 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 / 2020-11-13

La Fuerza Anti-Unión, which battles La Union Tepito for territories in Mexico City, has grown rapidly.

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Chiapas Bleeds as CJNG, Sinaloa Cartel Fight for Guatemala Trafficking Routes

DISPLACEMENT / 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 / 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 / 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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