Drug trafficker-turned-transport tycoon "Chepe Luna," shot dead in Honduras last month, will be survived by his web of corruption, with an extensive network of collaborators in the Salvadoran state.
A new report by the International Crisis Group (ICG) details how inadequate measures to combat drug trafficking helped exacerbate violence in the Guatemala-Honduras border region, a phenomenon that has important…
Authorities in Brazil seized over eight million packs of contraband cigarettes in just one state in 2013, providing an indication of the size of the trade in black market tobacco…
Authorities in Colombia and Venezuela have dismantled a group dedicated to the production and trafficking of costly false medicines between the two countries, in a case highlighting both the dangers…
Paraguay has seized over 10,000 apparently fake cell phones in Ciudad del Este, suggesting Asian phone counterfeiters are attempting to access the Latin American market through one of the region's…
A recent study of the illicit liquor market in six countries in Latin America documents the size and scope of a lucrative regional industry for criminal groups that accounts for…
The government in Colombia is to strengthen customs controls on its borders in an attempt to tackle widespread contraband smuggling after identifying at least 88 routes through which contraband is…
Criminal and rebel groups from Colombia are believed to be laundering money through the sale of smuggled cigarettes produced by a company owned by the President of Paraguay, using a…
Latin America is home to five of 11 countries identified by the United States as hotbeds of counterfeit and pirated goods -- a hugely profitable trade closely linked to organized…
In just the first 20 days of January 2014, Colombia's tax and customs police (Polfa) seized nearly $6.5 million in contraband products. The most commonly smuggled items were clothes, shoes and…
Colombia and Venezuela are to launch a new anti-smuggling initiative in an attempt to crack down on the huge amounts of contraband crossing their border daily, but local corruption…
Venezuela's government is planning to nearly double the fixed official exchange rate for the country's currency. However, the move is unlikely to end the black market economy the fixed rate…
About InSight Crime
Venezuela Coverage Continues to be Highlighted
This week, InSight Crime co-director Jeremy McDermott was the featured guest on the Americas Quarterly podcast, where he provided an expert overview of the changing dynamics…
Venezuela's Organized Crime Top 10 Attracts Attention
Last week, InSight Crime published its ranking of Venezuela’s ten organized crime groups to accompany the launch of the Venezuela Organized Crime Observatory. Read…
InSight Crime on El País Podcast
This week, InSight Crime co-founder, Jeremy McDermott, was among experts featured in an El País podcast on the progress of Colombia’s nascent peace process.
InSight Crime Interviewed by Associated Press
This week, InSight Crime’s Co-director Jeremy McDermott was interviewed by the Associated Press on developments in Haiti as the country continues its prolonged collapse. McDermott’s words were republished around the world,…
Escaping Barrio 18
Last week, InSight Crime published an investigation charting the story of Desafío, a 28-year-old Barrio 18 gang member who is desperate to escape gang life. But there’s one problem: he’s…
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