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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InSight Crime Events – Border Crime: The Northern Triangle and Tri-Border Area
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Through several rounds of extensive field investigations, our researchers have analyzed and mapped out the main illicit economies and criminal groups present in 39 border departments spread across the six countries of study – the Northern Triangle trio of Guatemala, Honduras, and El…
BRIEF
InSight Crime’s ‘Memo Fantasma’ Investigation Wins Simón Bolívar National Journalism Prize
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The staff at InSight Crime was awarded the prestigious Simón Bolívar national journalism prize in Colombia for its two-year investigation into the drug trafficker known as “Memo Fantasma,” which was…
ANALYSIS
InSight Crime – From Uncovering Organized Crime to Finding What Works
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This project began 10 years ago as an effort to address a problem: the lack of daily coverage, investigative stories and analysis of organized crime in the Americas. …
ANALYSIS
InSight Crime – Ten Years of Investigating Organized Crime in the Americas
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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