The Barrio 18 gang in El Salvador allegedly engaged in large-scale extortion of a community water management project, underscoring flaws in the government's claims that security is improving across the…
Extortion mafias in north Peru have regrouped and restructured after operations to dismantle them late last year, illustrating a pattern of recycled criminality that carries the risk of increased violence…
Criminal groups are coercing butchers at a food market in western Mexico to buy meat from them at elevated prices and are killing those who do not comply, a new…
Authorities in Trinidad and Tobago say gangs are behind the rampant extortion of contractors carrying out public works projects, highlighting the many ways criminal groups can exploit this source of…
Authorities in Peru have dismantled a criminal group that brought together distinct elements seen in many of Latin America's organized crime structures: private security firms, prisons, and the alleged involvement…
Three Chinese mafias are reportedly vying for criminal dominance following the capture of the leader of the most powerful mafia in Argentina, demonstrating the resilience of these organizations and the authorities'…
The temporary closing of a private school in Honduras may have been due to the imposition of what administrators are calling a "war tax," an illustration of how extortion…
Paraguay's main guerrilla group has demanded that the family of a hostage provide aid to impoverished communities in exchange for the prisoner's release, highlighting one of the ways the rebels…
A new study argues that powerful street gangs have gone a long way toward creating a parallel state in El Salvador, providing a helpful framework to illustrate the extent to…
Mexico remains the most dangerous country in the world for Catholic priests, according to a report from the Catholic Church that calls out the government for its lack of action…
El Salvador's main passenger transport entrepreneur dares to resist paying extortion to the country's gangs. Catalino Miranda already knows that the police and prosecution services will not solve the problem,…
In El Salvador, extortion demanded by gangs has become so normalized that there is a bus company that deducts the cost of extortion directly from drivers' payroll in…
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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