Barrio 18

Barrio 18 was one of the largest youth gangs in the Western Hemisphere, but it has been left weakened by El Salvador's gang crackdown.

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Latest News

BARRIO 18 / 22 SEP 2023

Confidential police reports reveal that the three main gangs operating in El Salvador remain a real threat.

BARRIO 18 / 22 SEP 2023

A close look at El Salvador's Police Information System, which is used to collect and analyze information on criminals in…

BARRIO 18 / 16 AUG 2023

The PNFAS has been the scene of two massacres. For years, the tension between Barrio 18 and MS13 escalated.

BARRIO 18 / 4 AUG 2023

Military crackdowns and mass trials show that there's no end in sight in El Salvador's anti-gang state of exception.

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About InSight Crime

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InSight Crime Contributes Expertise Across the Board 

22 SEP 2023

This week InSight Crime investigators Sara García and María Fernanda Ramírez led a discussion of the challenges posed by Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s “Total Peace” plan within urban contexts. The…

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InSight Crime Cited in New Colombia Drug Policy Plan

15 SEP 2023

InSight Crime’s work on emerging coca cultivation in Honduras, Guatemala, and Venezuela was cited in the Colombian government’s…

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InSight Crime Discusses Honduran Women's Prison Investigation

8 SEP 2023

Investigators Victoria Dittmar and María Fernanda Ramírez discussed InSight Crime’s recent investigation of a massacre in Honduras’ only women’s prison in a Twitter Spaces event on…

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Human Trafficking Investigation Published in Leading Mexican Newspaper

1 SEP 2023

Leading Mexican media outlet El Universal featured our most recent investigation, “The Geography of Human Trafficking on the US-Mexico Border,” on the front page of its August 30…

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InSight Crime's Coverage of Ecuador Leads International Debate

25 AUG 2023

This week, Jeremy McDermott, co-director of InSight Crime, was interviewed by La Sexta, a Spanish television channel, about the situation of extreme violence and insecurity in Ecuador…

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