All About Juan Chamale

NEWS

Did Guatemala Military Help Escort Sinaloa Cartel's Cocaine?

COCAINE / 8 JUL 2021

A US investigation has shed light on the alleged participation of Guatemalan soldiers in a cocaine smuggling network linked to Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel, a reminder of the pivotal role the…

COCAINE / 10 JAN 2020

The arrest of a mayor in Guatemala's northern department of San Marcos has unveiled a criminal structure known as "Los Pochos" which investigators see as heirs of "Los Chamalé," formerly…

GUATEMALA / 11 NOV 2014

The criminal history of the drug trafficker who reportedly inherited the network once run by crime lord "Juan Chamale" sheds light on the ties between Central America's top criminal groups,…

GUATEMALA / 10 JUN 2014

Authorities in Guatemala say the underworld has fragmented in the wake of the arrests and extraditions of the country's top drug traffickers, but the flow of cocaine has been unaffected.

EXTRADITION / 29 FEB 2012

A Guatemalan court ruled that one of the country's most notorious alleged criminals, Juan Alberto Ortiz Lopez, alias 'Juan Chamale,' can be extradited to the United States, suggesting the practice…

EXTRADITION / 7 FEB 2012

A legal safeguard built into Guatemala's justice system is being used to stall the extraditions to the United States of some of the country's most notorious suspected drug traffickers.

GUATEMALA / 11 OCT 2011

International Crisis Group’s new report on Guatemala paints a bleak picture of a country overrun by Zetas and a government undermined by local drug lords, but it is as useful…

GUATEMALA / 4 MAY 2011

Guatemala's top drug lord, Juan Alberto Ortiz Lopez, alias "Juan Chamale," is accused of smuggling over 3,000 kilos of cocaine in small fishing boats in 2009, according to a…

GUATEMALA / 15 APR 2011

In recent years Guatemala and Mexico have seen demonstrations in apparent support of convicted or slain drug traffickers. But is it dangerous to interpret these rallies as sincere expressions of…

GUATEMALA / 31 MAR 2011

A trafficker believed to be a key contact for the Sinaloa Cartel was arrested in Guatemala on Wednesday. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) considered Guatemalan Juan Alberto Ortiz Lopez, alias…

GUATEMALA / 21 MAR 2011

There is a troubling trend in Guatemala that is very hard to measure: opium poppy production, which provides the raw material for heroin.

GUATEMALA PERSONALITIES / 2017-03-09 22:42:30

Until his arrest in March 2011, Juan Alberto Ortiz Lopez, alias "Juan Chamale," was ranked by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as Guatemala's number one drug trafficker. He…

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Continues to be Highlighted

3 MAR 2023

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…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela's Organized Crime Top 10 Attracts Attention

24 FEB 2023

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…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime on El País Podcast

10 FEB 2023

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.

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Interviewed by Associated Press

3 FEB 2023

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,…

THE ORGANIZATION

Escaping Barrio 18

27 JAN 2023

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…