Criminal Actors
Histories and profiles of organized crime groups, insurgencies, street gangs, vigilantes and the criminal actors that lead them.
Amigos dos Amigos
Amigos dos Amigos is a criminal group based in Brazil’s second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro. The organization was formed in…
The Colombian Mafia
The mafia in Colombia today is comprised of a maelstrom of localized groups, shadowy power brokers and sub-contracted labor that…
Colombia’s Comprehensive Approach for a Post-FARC State
The demobilization of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - FARC) has simultaneously represented a…
José Bayron Piedrahita Ceballos, alias ‘El Árabe,’ or the ‘Patron de Caucasia’
José Bayron Piedrahita Ceballos is presumed to be one of the biggest drug lords in Colombia. During his criminal career…
Miguel Botache Santillana, alias ‘Gentil Duarte’
Miguel Botache Santillana, better known as "Gentil Duarte," is currently Colombia's most wanted criminal. He used to be an…
Gustavo Aníbal Giraldo, alias ‘Pablito’
Gustavo Aníbal Giraldo Quinchía, alias “Pablito”, is a member of the ELN’s Central Command (Comando Central – COCE). He is one of the…
Géner García Molina, alias ‘Jhon 40’
Géner García Molina, better known as "Jhon 40," is the one who connects the cocaine that leaves southern Colombia…
1st Front Dissidence (Ex-FARC Mafia)
The 1st Front dissidence is the most important of the criminal groups comprised of ex-members of the now demobilized Revolutionary…
Néstor Gregorio Vera Fernández, alias ‘Iván Mordisco’
Nestor Gregorio Vera Fernández, alias “Iván Mordisco,” is currently one of southern Colombia’s principal criminals. Until 2016 he served as…
Ex-FARC Mafia: The New Player in Colombian Organized Crime
The Marxist rebel army of the FARC is gone, disbanded and reborn as a political party. But the ex-FARC mafia…
Knights Templar
The Knights Templar (Cabelleros Templarios) emerged in March 2011 as a splinter group of the once-mighty Familia Michoacana. Like their predecessors, the Knights Templar cast themselves…
Cartel of the Suns
The “Cartel of the Suns” (Cartel de los Soles) is the term used to describe the shadowy groups inside Venezuela’s…
Latest News
Dirty Business – The Smuggling Pipeline Carrying Mercury Across the Amazon
Smuggling networks are feeding illegal mining operations across the Amazon Basin with mercury, despite global efforts to clamp down on the use of the substance.
How Chinese Criminals Secretly Move Millions for Mexico Cartels
While the involvement of Chinese money-laundering rings in handling drug proceeds from Mexico is nothing new, a number of recent court cases in the United States have revealed crucial information…
Showdown Brewing Over Fate of Runaway Mexico Governor
Time appears to be running out for the governor of the US-Mexico border state of Tamaulipas – after lawmakers stripped him of his immunity from prosecution and US officials shared…
Investigations
Chapters
Stay Informed with InSight Weekly
Get fresh updates on organized crime from across the region delivered to your inbox.
SUBSCRIBE