A border dispute between Venezuela and Guyana is turning violent after attacks on Guyanese security forces. Could the regime of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro be using criminal gangs to provoke an international crisis?
Essequibo, a region of dense Amazon jungle in Guyana claimed by Venezuela, has become fertile ground for organized crime, further complicating a potentially explosive diplomatic situation.
While crime groups expand their operations from within Venezuela, on the Guyanese side, the state is weak and unprepared to confront the criminal economies growing in the contested area.
The wealth of gold and other minerals in Essequibo makes it attractive for illicit mining and smuggling, while its complex and remote coastal geography provides organized crime with advantageous drug trafficking routes. Additionally, human trafficking and smuggling are increasing as more Venezuelans enter Essequibo and Guyana amid political and economic turmoil at home.
Venezuelan organized crime has already managed to penetrate Essequibo and is allied with the state. Now, the fear is that the Venezuelan government is slipstreaming behind its criminal partners right into Essequibo.
In recent years, the Maduro government has resurrected a centuries-old claim to Essequibo – which comprises most of Guyana’s territory. Although the dispute is currently being mediated by the International Court of Justice, with a decision expected in August 2026, Venezuela does not recognize the court’s authority over the case. Maduro’s regime is already deploying an arsenal of measures to back its claim, which a growing body of evidence suggests includes alliances with criminal actors.
The dispute has international relevance, and it has drawn the attention of world powers. In addition to gold, the Essequibo region is home to significant oil deposits. The US-based global oil giant ExxonMobil operates dozens of wells off the coast of Essequibo and is looking to build more. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio traveled to Guyana in March 2025 and warned in a news conference that it would be a “very bad day” for Venezuela if the country attacked its neighbor. The British government has also weighed in on the side of its former colony, Guyana, sending a Royal Navy warship in 2023 as a show of support.
InSight Crime traveled to both sides of Essequibo to better understand the major criminal economies plaguing the territory and how they intersect with the current geopolitical tensions.
Investigation Chapters
A Golden Opportunity: Maduro and Venezuelan Miners Target Essequibo
Among political threats and provocations, it is the lure of the mineral wealth of Essequibo that seems to offer the potential to ignite not only…
No Man’s Land: How Drug Trafficking Took Root in the Disputed Essequibo Territory
The remoteness and sparse population of Guyana’s Essequibo region makes it an attractive route for drug traffickers and a far more significant cocaine transit area…
False Promises: How Essequibo’s Mineral Wealth Spurs Human Trafficking
As Guyana grows as a destination for migrants from Venezuela and elsewhere, its appeal has also increased for human traffickers. But the Guyanese government remains…
Credits:
Written by: Venezuela Investigative Unit
Edited by: Mike LaSusa, Creusa Muñoz
Fact-checking: Venezuela Investigative Unit
Layout and design: María Isabel Gaviria, Juan José Restrepo
Graphics: María Isabel Gaviria, Juan José Restrepo, Ana Isabel Rico
