Prisons
Painting the picture of the least understood, and potentially most potent, part of the criminal underworld.
News Analysis
Ecuador Confronts Unprecedented Levels of Prison Violence
Long-simmering tensions between prison gangs in Ecuador exploded this week, leaving at least 75 people brutally killed in four prisons across the country.
Guatemala’s Anti-Extortion Plan: A Legacy of Unkept Promises
It was one of Alejandro Giammattei’s most emphatic promises. One year later, the Interior Ministry supported his strategy to reduce extortions by cutting off access to communication devices among the…
MS13 Prison Releases Reinforce Potential Pact with El Salvador
Though he did not have any apparent health problems, a top MS13 leader was transferred from a prison to a hospital in El Salvador -- a move approved by…
Labor Initiatives in Women’s Prisons Struggle to Reduce Recidivism
Labor initiatives inside women´s prisons in Latin America aim to improve employment opportunities for female inmates, so as to reduce the rate of repeat offenses. However, beyond prison walls, they…
GameChangers 2020: Tren de Aragua and the Exportation of Venezuelan Organized Crime
Venezuela has long been known as a strategic rearguard for Colombia guerrilla groups. Yet 2020 saw the acceleration of a newer dynamic: Venezuelan gangs now rival their Colombian counterparts in…
GameChangers 2020: How Organized Crime Survived the Pandemic
Welcome to InSight Crime’s Criminal GameChangers 2020, where we highlight the most important trends in organized crime in the Americas over the course of the year. …
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