Even under the best of circumstances, there are few incentives to become a cooperating witness in an extortion case in El Salvador. And, as one witness has found out, participation…
A new report from Mexico’s statistics institute provides fresh evidence that the nation’s ongoing security crisis has taken a toll on the local economy, particularly on large businesses.
Citizens in Mexico are extorted once every hour and 15 minutes, underscoring how fundamental this activity is for the country’s criminals and how severe underreporting makes it increasingly difficult for…
A number of recent operations have revealed that the MS13 has developed a financial structure that’s helped them increase their income. But how does the gang weave its dirty money…
The repeated appearance of “copycats” in Guatemala shows how criminals are taking advantage of the country’s widespread extortion and its near primal fear of street gangs.
Cell phone trafficking in Costa Rica prisons has become a lucrative and rarely punished business, allowing criminals to continue their illicit activities and letting crimes like extortion persist.
A visit to a women’s prison in Guatemala shows the increasing role that women play in extortion rackets. The ubiquity of extortion markets in urban, poor neighborhoods has converted this…
Authorities in El Salvador are keen to expand a much-praised local policing model believed to have helped two rural communities tackle bloody gang control. But a visit to the areas…
The administration of US President Donald Trump has announced that it plans to end to a migration policy known as Temporary Protected Status for 2,500 Nicaraguans, while 60,000 Hondurans have…
A new report suggests that two organized crime groups in Mexico initially funded their criminal enterprises through extorting and kidnapping avocado farmers, shedding new light on how these now-powerful…
A new report says that thousands of corner stores have closed in Honduras' capital in the past two years due to extortion and pushing residents to flee, a stark…
A new report claims that a Colombian loan shark network is operating in more than three quarters of Mexico's states, a further indication that these lucrative schemes are expanding their…
About InSight Crime
Apure Investigation Makes Headlines
InSight Crime’s investigation into the battle for the Venezuelan border state of Apure resonated in both Colombian and Venezuelan media. A dozen outlets picked up the report, including Venezuela’s…
InSight Crime Tackles Illegal Fishing
In October, InSight Crime and American University’s Center for Latin American and Latino Studies (CLALS) began a year-long project on illegal, unreported, unregulated (IUU) fishing in…
InSight Crime Featured in Handbook for Reporting on Organized Crime
In late September, the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) published an excerpt of its forthcoming guide on reporting organized crime in Indonesia.
Probing Organized Crime in Haiti
InSight Crime has made it a priority to investigate organized crime in Haiti, where an impotent state is reeling after the July assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, coupled with an…
Emergency First Aid in Hostile Environments
At InSight Crime's annual treat, we ramped up hostile environment and emergency first aid training for our 40-member staff, many of whom conduct on-the-ground investigations in dangerous corners of the region.
Stay Informed with Weekly InSight
Get fresh updates on organized crime from across the region delivered to your inbox.
SUBSCRIBE