A new investigation by the Associated Press has shed additional light on how corruption and lack of political will act as prime drivers of Peru's lucrative illegal logging trade, with…
A new report estimates that transnational crime in the developing world may be a multi-trillion dollar annual business, generating huge illicit financial flows that should be investigated and disrupted…
Authorities in Brazil have announced a new strategy to reduce illegal logging and timber trafficking in the Amazon, but the plan is likely to face serious obstacles given the magnitude…
The murder in Mexico of indigenous activist and human rights defender Isidro Baldenegro López highlights the inevitablity of deadly collisions between environmental activists and organized crime across Latin America.
Latin America witnessed a criminal boom in illegal mining in 2016, and a rise of complementary illicit activities, as organized crime recognized the potential of illegal gold can rival the…
A new report documents 2015 as the worst year on record for murders of land and environmental defenders. Latin American countries were among the most dangerous for activists, in part…
A top government official in Peru said drug trafficking organizations laundered $250 million last year, while Peruvian and US authorities highlighted the key role other illegal economies such as illegal mining…
An environmental group has accused Peru's government of cutting short the term of its top forestry official because his agency charged with protecting the country's Amazon forest from timber traffickers…
A recent investigation by the independent think tank Fundación Ideas para la Paz (FIP) reveals that while peace negotiations between Colombia's government and rebel group the FARC advance in Cuba,…
As world leaders congregate in Paris to discuss how to address global climate change, InSight Crime highlights five criminal industries that are causing enormous environmental degradation in Latin America.
How a seemingly audacious goal to protect the Amazon makes economic sense.
A recent newspaper report describes how a government strategy meant to combat illegal logging in Brazil -- via the creation of special zones where private companies can harvest wood on…
About InSight Crime
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…
Environmental and Academic Praise
InSight Crime’s six-part series on the plunder of the Peruvian Amazon continues to inform the debate on environmental security in the region. Our Environmental Crimes Project Manager, María Fernanda Ramírez,…
Series on Plunder of Peru’s Amazon Makes Headlines
Since launching on June 2, InSight Crime’s six-part series on environmental crime in Peru’s Amazon has been well-received. Detailing the shocking impunity enjoyed by those plundering the rainforest, the investigation…
Duarte’s Death Makes Waves
The announcement of the death of Gentil Duarte, one of the top dissident commanders of the defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), continues to reverberate in Venezuela and Colombia.
Cattle Trafficking Acclaim, Investigation into Peru’s Amazon
On May 18, InSight Crime launched its most recent investigation into cattle trafficking between Central America and Mexico. It showed precisely how beef, illicitly produced in Honduras, Guatemala…
Stay Informed with Weekly InSight
Get fresh updates on organized crime from across the region delivered to your inbox.
SUBSCRIBE