All About Rastrojos

ECUADOR / 28 SEP 2012

Mexican and Colombian groups may soon start battling it out for control of drug trafficking routes in Ecuador, something that could further threaten the country’s already precarious security situation.

COLOMBIA / 25 SEP 2012

They say that during the worst times, between 1999 and 2002, when right-wing paramilitaries who went by their acronym the AUC carried out their violent assault in Catatumbo -- a…

COLOMBIA / 8 SEP 2012

Despite a five percent drop in homicides in Colombia's Valle del Cauca province over the past year, rising violence in certain regions has sparked concerns that a struggle for control…

COLOMBIA / 31 AUG 2012

Colombian authorities dismantled a drug trafficking ring said to form part of an alliance between the ELN and the Rastrojos, underscoring the increased importance of business ties between Colombia's guerrilla…

COLOMBIA / 31 AUG 2012

An attempt to prosecute a local mayor for ties to the Rastrojos drug gang highlights how Colombia's criminal groups have evolved away from high-level political infiltration in favor of fostering…

DIEGO RASTROJO / 8 AUG 2012

Venezuela extradited the military leader of drug trafficking organization the Rastrojos to his native Colombia, though it is not yet clear whether he will be extradited to the US to…

ARMS TRAFFICKING / 19 JUL 2012

Colombia police have seized weapons from criminal gang the Rastrojos which include guns reportedly traced to the Venezuelan military, hinting at a connection between the neo-paramilitary group and elements of…

COLOMBIA / 19 JUL 2012

The loss of several top leaders of the Rastrojos has created a dangerous power vacuum within the gang and in their territory, raising the chance of violence, as a report…

COLOMBIA / 19 JUL 2012

Documents, including a diary, which reportedly belonged to a Colombian drug lord offer a glimpse into the corruptive power of the now-defunct Norte del Valle Cartel, casting suspicion on top…

COLOMBIA / 19 JUL 2012

Police in Colombia claimed to have arrested the new leader of the beleaguered Rastrojos drug gang, creating confusion over the state of the group's leadership.

COLOMBIA / 19 JUL 2012

The Colombian Navy has found a semi-submersible vessel used to traffic drugs on the Pacific coast, thought to belong to the Rastrojos drug gang, in the second such finding this…

COLOMBIA / 19 JUL 2012

Colombian authorities expect a violent realignment of underworld forces following the capture of powerful criminal leader, 'Diego Rastrojo.'…

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Cited in New Colombia Drug Policy Plan

15 SEP 2023

InSight Crime’s work on emerging coca cultivation in Honduras, Guatemala, and Venezuela was cited in the Colombian government’s…

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InSight Crime Discusses Honduran Women's Prison Investigation

8 SEP 2023

Investigators Victoria Dittmar and María Fernanda Ramírez discussed InSight Crime’s recent investigation of a massacre in Honduras’ only women’s prison in a Twitter Spaces event on…

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Human Trafficking Investigation Published in Leading Mexican Newspaper

1 SEP 2023

Leading Mexican media outlet El Universal featured our most recent investigation, “The Geography of Human Trafficking on the US-Mexico Border,” on the front page of its August 30…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime's Coverage of Ecuador Leads International Debate

25 AUG 2023

This week, Jeremy McDermott, co-director of InSight Crime, was interviewed by La Sexta, a Spanish television channel, about the situation of extreme violence and insecurity in Ecuador…

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Human Rights Watch Draws on InSight Crime's Haiti Coverage

18 AUG 2023

Non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch relied on InSight Crime's coverage this week, citing six articles and one of our criminal profiles in its latest report on the humanitarian…