The mad scramble for criminal power in the aftermath of the demobilization of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) is over. The Urabeños, or as they prefer to call themselves, the Gaitanistas, have come out on top.
The Victory of the Urabeños – The New Face of Colombian Organized Crime
COLOMBIA
/
2 MAY 2014
Chapter 1
The Urabeños – The Criminal Hybrid
COLOMBIA
/
2 MAY 2014
The mad scramble for criminal power in the aftermath of the demobilization of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) is over. The Urabeños, or as they prefer to call…
Chapter 2
The BACRIM and Their Position in Colombia’s Underworld
COLOMBIA
/
2 MAY 2014
The name BACRIM was created by the government of former President Alvaro Uribe in the aftermath of the demobilization of the AUC. Then-President Uribe was keen to draw a line…
Chapter 3
The Evolution of the Urabeños
COLOMBIA
/
2 MAY 2014
Uraba, which means "promised land" in the indigenous tongue, was the cradle of the paramilitaries, and remains the country's principal BACRIM stronghold. This is where most of the Urabeños command…
Chapter 4
The Last BACRIM Standing: The Urabeños Today
CRIMINAL MIGRATION
/
2 MAY 2014
Today the Urabeños are the only BACRIM with a national reach. They are also arguably the only real BACRIM still standing. While the government recognizes the existence of three BACRIM…
Chapter 5
The Future of the BACRIM and Post-Conflict Colombia
COLOMBIA
/
2 MAY 2014
While the Urabeños are presently established as Colombia's top drug trafficking group, it remains to be seen how the evolution of organized crime in Colombia, and the future of the…
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ANALYSIS
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FEATURED
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2 NOV 2020
In early 2009, Steven Dudley was in Medellín, Colombia. His assignment: speak to a jailed paramilitary leader in the Itagui prison, just south of the city. Following his interview inside…
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