El Salvador's new security minister has claimed the truce has allowed the Barrio 18 and MS-13 street gangs to strengthen ties with transnational drug traffickers, showing a significant rhetorical shift…
A recent spike in homicides raises concerns about the state of El Salvador's gang truce. But if the numbers are examined more carefully, they show that these alarm bells are…
El Salvador and Honduras are pioneering new efforts to stop gang-related violence via truces, but there are some critical differences between the two experiments that may make or break them.
According to police intelligence, El Salvador gangs are expanding into loans, security services, and legal businesses, which officials claim is a sign that criminal groups are utilizing the gang truce…
Salvadoran officials have called for an investigation into truce mediator Raul Mijango, after he made comments suggesting that a recent spike in homicides is related to gang dissatisfaction and would…
Harsh and repressive actions taken against gangs by Central American governments have served to worsen violence, according to the independent research project Small Arms Survey, highlighting the need for policy…
El Salvador's Attorney General has accused a former minister, who played a critical role in coordinating the country's gang truce, of hampering police operations targeting gangs, highlighting one of the contradictions…
Three families from Soyapango, a municipality on the edge of El Salvador's capital, San Salvador, have been forced from their homes by gangs, in another indication of the challenges of…
The United States has announced $91.2 million in funding for security programs in El Salvador that are not aligned with the country's gang truce, raising the question of whether…
In October 2012, the US Treasury Department designated the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) as a transnational criminal organization (TCO). While this assertion seems unfounded, there is one case that illustrates just…
El Salvador's Cojutepeque jail is a perfect illustration of how prisons in this country have become the main breeding and training grounds for street gangs.
Barrio 18 leader Carlos Lechuga Mojica, alias "El Viejo Lin," is one of the most prominent spokesmen for El Salvador's gang truce. InSight Crime co-director Steven Dudley spoke with Mojica…
About InSight Crime
Criminal Enterprise on the High Seas
Last week, InSight Crime published the second half of an extensive investigation into Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing that plagues the waters of nine Latin American countries. Among the stories were how…
Oceans Pillaged in Central America and the Caribbean
Last week, InSight Crime published the first installment of a nine-part investigation uncovering the hidden depths of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing in Latin America. The first installment covered Central America and…
Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua Becomes Truly Transnational
This week, InSight Crime published a deep dive into the total control that Venezuelan mega-gang, Tren de Aragua, has over the lives of those it smuggles between Venezuela and Chile…
Turkish Traffickers Delivering Latin American Cocaine to Persian Gulf
Last week, InSight Crime published the second half of an investigation piecing together the emerging role of Turkish cocaine traffickers in supplying Russia and the Persian Gulf, which are among…
Turkey as a Lynchpin in European Cocaine Pipeline
InSight Crime is extending its investigation into the cocaine pipeline to Europe, and tracking the growing connections between Latin American drug traffickers and European criminal organizations. This led us to…
Stay Informed with Weekly InSight
Get fresh updates on organized crime from across the region delivered to your inbox.
SUBSCRIBE