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El Salvador

El Salvador is a relatively small but growing player in the drug trafficking business. It serves as a drug receiving and storage point along the Pacific Coast, and a bridge via the Pan-American Highway, the Fonseca Gulf and roads from Honduras that cut through relatively unpopulated areas

Latest News

Honduras Makes Few Advances Against Crime During 6-Month State of Exception

NEWS / 5 JUN 2023

After six months, the state of exception in Honduras has failed to significantly reduce gang violence and extortion.

‘Mula’: The Bridge Between MS13 and Mexican Mafia in Tijuana, Mexico

NEWS / 23 MAR 2023

Nelson Alexander Flores Pacheco, alias "Mula", was the liaison between the Mexican Mafia and the MS13 in Tijuana, Mexico.

InSight Crime’s Cocaine Seizure Round-Up 2022

NEWS / 8 MAR 2023

InSight Crime reviews Latin America and the Caribbean's cocaine seizure date from 2022 to find out what it reveals about regional trafficking.

El Salvador Profile

Criminal Actors

Armed Groups

Crime and violence in El Salvador are fueled by street gangs – particularly the infamous Mara Salvatrucha (MS13) and to a lesser extent two factions of the Barrio 18. The gangs control territory through cliques, engaging in low-level crimes like extortion, kidnapping and drug sales. Drug trafficking groups – the Perrones and the Texis Cartel – also have operations in the country. But these groups have been on the decline after the arrests of key figures, leaving a door open for the country’s dominant gang – the MS13 – to enter the trafficking market.

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Personalities

José Adán Salazar Umaña, alias 'Chepe Diablo'

CHEPE DIABLO / MAY 26, 2021

José Adán Salazar Umaña, alias "Chepe Diablo," does not fit the normal profile of a criminal leader. As the former president of the first division of Salvadoran soccer and the…

Moris Alexander Bercián Manchón, alias 'El Barney'

EL SALVADOR / MARCH 9, 2020

Moris Alexander Bercián Manchón, alias "El Barney," is one of six MS13 members in El Salvador sanctioned by the United States for participation in illicit transnational actvities including drug trafficking.

Reynerio Flores Lazo

EL SALVADOR PERSONALITIES / 2017-03-09 22:27:26

While Reynerio Flores is serving an 80-year jail term, he remains one of the most notorious and important leaders of Perrones, one of the most significant cocaine smuggling gangs in…

José Natividad Luna Pereira, alias ‘Chepe Luna’

CHEPE LUNA / 2020-03-10 22:29:20

Once the most powerful boss of the Perrones "transportista" syndicate, Jose Natividad Luna Pereira, alias "Chepe Luna," was murdered in Honduras in June 2014. Before his death, Luna built a…

News

BOLIVIA / 3 MAR 2023

As the CITES treaty hits 50, we take a look at its successes, failures, and future challenges in reducing the illicit trade of wildlife.

CRIMINAL MIGRATION / 1 MAR 2023

US authorities have made several arrests that could strike a big blow to the MS13’s Mexico Program.

BARRIO 18 / 9 FEB 2023

In El Salvador, crackdowns have led to rapid improvements in security. But there is real doubt about whether gangs are gone for good or what Bukele’s real motives may have…

ARGENTINA / 8 FEB 2023

InSight Crime's 2022 Homicide Round-Up covers more countries than ever before, with a major expansion into nations of the Caribbean.

BARRIO 18 / 30 JAN 2023

While thousands of gang members have been arrested in El Salvador, some may have moved their activities to Mexico.

EL SALVADOR / 10 JAN 2023

Extortion in Latin America continues to bring in fortunes for criminal gangs. So how do they do it?…

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