Electing Criminals: Municipal Power and Organized Crime in the Northern Triangle

EL SALVADOR / 2 NOV 2017

In Central America’s Northern Triangle, organized crime has permeated national politics by corrupting local governments. This series presents the stories of three mayors in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, exploring the links between power, drug trafficking rings, gangs and corruption.

Chapter 1

Guatemala Mayor ‘Tres Kiebres’: The Art of Being ‘3 Times Broken’

ELITES AND CRIME / 11 OCT 2017

The atmosphere was light, almost jovial, as Ipala's Mayor Esduin Javier turned to the next item on the agenda. The issue was what the people at the municipality's monthly town…

Chapter 2

A Honduras Political Clan and Its Criminal Fiefdom

ELITES AND CRIME / 19 OCT 2017

It was around midnight that police in a rural area of the northern department of Olancho first heard the distinctive buzz of a low-flying aircraft. Night duty officers in three…

Chapter 3

Symbiosis: Gangs and Municipal Power in Apopa, El Salvador

BARRIO 18 / 2 NOV 2017

Stories such as that of the former mayor of the El Salvador municipality of Apopa, José Elías Hernández, or "Old Timer" as the gangs knew him, are increasingly…

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