Mexican authorities paraded five men accused of the Monterrey casino arson attack, who allegedly told investigators that they had not intended to kill so many people.
At least two bus routes around San Salvador have been hit by drivers striking to demand that the authorities protect them from extortion demands by gangs.
Shop owners, bus drivers and street vendors all have to make weekly extortion payments to the many gangs in Medellin, Colombia. The payments are small and difficult to track, but…
Extortion has long been a favored tactic of drug gangs in Central America and Mexico, but evidence suggests that criminal organizations may be increasingly running these activities from inside the…
Argentina's authorities arrested four suspected members of a gang, two of them from China, who allegedly targeted Chinese establishments for extortion in the area around Buenos Aires.
Colombian rebels are believed to be behind the massacre of seven people who pretended to be the FARC in order to extort money, as the guerrillas step up their extortion…
A Brazilian militia's invasion of hundreds of government apartments in Rio, which it then sold on, is another sign of how these vigilante groups seem more interested in committing crimes…
Mexico's government secretary said that organized criminal groups now control whole areas of territory in the country, and charge fees for other groups to operate there.
Drug trafficking is the single most lucrative activity for criminal groups in Mexico, but while the supply chain and production methods associated with it are fairly well known, the micro-economic…
With talk in Medellin about creating a cashless public transport system and moves in Bogota towards installing cell phone signal jammers in prison, Colombian authorities are considering increasingly dramatic measures…
Much of the headlines in the region about organized crime are focused on the chase, capture, and sometimes death of infamous criminal leaders. But there are many more subtle battles…
Two attacks by suspected organized criminal gangs on state oil workers in Mexico in recent days have left two dead and one kidnapped. The attacks, which occurred in two different…
About InSight Crime
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…
Memo Fantasma Coverage Gets Worldwide Attention
Guillermo Acevedo, the former Colombian drug lord and paramilitary commander better known as Memo Fantasma, may soon be allowed to leave prison. Since first revealing the identity of Memo Fantasma…
Who Are Memo Fantasma and Sergio Roberto de Carvalho?
Inside the criminal career of Memo Fantasma In March 2020, InSight Crime revealed the identity and whereabouts of Memo Fantasma, a paramilitary commander and drug trafficker living in…
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