All About Panama

PANAMA / 6 FEB 2014

A one ton drugs bust near the border with Colombia has shone a light on the increasing use of Panama as a transit nation, part of a continuing shift away…

HONDURAS / 14 JAN 2014

The seizure of nearly $7.2 million in cash from three Hondurans by Panamanian authorities highlights both Panama's role as a regional money laundering hub and Honduras' growing involvement in the…

INFOGRAPHICS / 26 NOV 2013

Panama has registered a significant increase in drug seizures this year compared to 2012, underling the country's growing importance to drug traffickers as the region's cocaine routes continue to shift.

COLOMBIA / 7 OCT 2013

Four passengers have died after a US anti-drug plane crashed while monitoring one of Colombia's main drug trafficking corridors in a region dominated by the FARC guerrillas and…

GUATEMALA / 7 OCT 2013

The robbers of drug shipments known as "tumbadores" are the pirates of the Central American cocaine trail, but their stories of theft, corruption, murder and drug trafficking are closely intertwined with the…

CRIMINAL MIGRATION / 1 OCT 2013

A former Panama policeman has become a commander in the FARC's 57th Front, demonstrating the Colombian guerrillas' established presence across the Central American border and practice of recruiting foreigners into…

PANAMA / 30 SEP 2013

Throughout the isthmus underworld, an island is worth more than 1,000 kilometers of road. It is not surprising then that Panama's islands have few authorities and many traffickers. …

BELTRAN LEYVA ORG / 17 SEP 2013

Panama's intelligence sources have identified four major Mexican cartels operating in that country, another sign of the widening reach of Mexico's criminals across the region, and of Panama's importance as…

PANAMA / 27 AUG 2013

Panama's Attorney General has called for more funds to combat the nation's 201 gangs, highlighting how the issue of street gangs is not limited to the violence-ridden Northern Triangle countries…

COSTA RICA / 22 AUG 2013

Why did the seizure of a briefcase containing money on a secluded Costa Rican border cause so much concern to a Nicaraguan and a Salvadoran? The web of drug trafficking…

MONEY LAUNDERING / 16 AUG 2013

Panama is the financial and commercial center of Central America, but also, historically, it is where drug traffickers launder money. Real estate, businesses and even greeting cards are used by…

FARC / 25 JUL 2013

Coca crops and processing laboratories have been discovered in Panama for the second time this year, suggesting that cultivation is now creeping across three of Colombia's borders and into neighboring countries.

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…