All About Illegal Mining

COLOMBIA / 26 JUL 2013

Documents seized by the Colombian police suggest that the ELN are involved in the illegal mining trade in a more sophisticated way, with the guerrillas taking a share of the…

ILLEGAL MINING / 15 JUL 2013

An estimated 85 percent of fuel oil sold in the Amazonian Madre de Dios region of Peru is allegedly used in illegal gold mining, an illustration of how the industry…

COLOMBIA / 5 APR 2013

Colombia's famed "Emerald Czar," Victor Carranza, is dead of natural causes. As was clear when I interviewed him, Carranza, more than any other underworld figure in Colombia's history, knew how…

COLOMBIA / 4 APR 2013

A letter obtained by Colombian media has shed light on the extent to which the country's oldest guerrilla group, the FARC, extorts the mining industry.

COLOMBIA / 2 APR 2013

As President Juan Manuel Santos declared a new offensive against Colombia's micro-trafficking, a new report reveals the depth of the country's illegal mining trade, highlighting two of Colombia's principal security…

COLOMBIA / 1 APR 2013

Colombia's ailing "Emerald Czar," Victor Carranza, has called for a new peace deal with his rivals as fears mount over a new war for control of the lucrative emerald sector.

ILLEGAL MINING / 12 FEB 2013

Peruvian officials have seized 198 kilos of mercury they believe was intended for use in unlicensed gold mining, a reminder of the issues that the government faces in tackling this…

COLOMBIA / 5 FEB 2013

Colombia's second-largest guerrilla group the ELN announced the kidnap of two German citizens in the Venezuelan border region, in what looks like an attempt to increase pressure on the…

ILLEGAL MINING / 28 JAN 2013

Citing links to organized crime, the Attorney General's Office (PGR) in Mexico has frozen the accounts of 12 mining companies so far this year, underscoring how criminal groups may be…

COLOMBIA / 28 NOV 2012

Colombia's Urabeños gang, as part of ongoing expansion, reportedly purchased gold mining operations from their rivals the Rastrojos, although this agreement was not respected…

ILLEGAL MINING / 30 OCT 2012

A former governor and PRI leader in Mexico has claimed that the Zetas have broadened their activities to include coal mining in the northern state of…

COLOMBIA / 30 OCT 2012

There are signs that a new battle for control of Colombia’s emerald business is already breaking out, as the industry’s ailing kingpin, Victor Carranza, struggles to keep a…

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime's Chemical Precursor Report continues to be a reference in the region

19 MAY 2023

For the second week in a row, our investigation into the flow of precursor chemicals for the manufacture of synthetic drugs in Mexico has been cited by multiple regional media…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Chemical Precursor Report Widely Cited

THE ORGANIZATION / 12 MAY 2023

We are proud to see that our recently published investigation into the supply chain of chemical precursors feeding Mexico’s synthetic drug production has been warmly received.

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Paraguay Election Coverage Draws Attention 

5 MAY 2023

InSight Crime looked at the various anti-organized crime policies proposed by the candidates in Paraguay’s presidential election, which was won on April 30 by Santiago Peña. Our pre-election coverage was cited…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Cited in OAS, CARICOM Reports

28 APR 2023

This week, InSight Crime’s work was cited nine times in a new report by the Organization of American States (OAS) titled “The Impact of Organized Crime on Women,…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Staff Cited as Experts by International Media

21 APR 2023

This week, InSight Crime deputy editor, Juan Diego Posada, was interviewed by the Associated Press about connections between the ex-FARC mafia and Brazilian criminal groups, and…