In Guatemala, an investigation shows the links between an influential pastor and a high-profile drug-trafficker to support the construction of a church. The concerned pastor and church denied the accusations. A legal expert suggests that Kenya include the Unexplained Wealth Order (UWO) in the country’s criminal law. In other countries, the UWO has had some…
After numerous seizures during the month of November, the Venezuelan authorities reported an increase in drug flows coming from Colombia through the country’s coastal state of Anzoátegui. It seems that the region is also the centre of an air-trafficking network, sending drugs to the Caribbean, Honduras and Mexico. The dismantling of a network of ketamine…
Alfredo Guzmán Salazar, son of the Mexican drug lord “El Chapo” Guzmán, is reportedly in Medellín, Colombia under the protection of a criminal gang. He is allegedly controlling two laboratories in the city and coordinating the shipment of around 400 kg of cocaine per week to Mexico from the Colombian port of Buenaventura, highlighting the…
Mexican drug lord Héctor Beltrán Leyva died of a heart attack on November 19. He was the last of his brothers at the head of the Beltrán Leyva cartel before he was arrested and jailed in 2014. The cartel started by operating in the state of Sinaloa and it controlled some of the main smuggling…
The influence of the National Liberation Army (ELN), a Colombian armed group, is growing as the group reportedly operates on Venezuelan territory. Venezuela’s minister of defence raised criticisms towards the Colombian authorities, saying that they were not able to contain the threat of criminal groups and drug trafficking. Academics, researchers, and journalists, met on November…
14 people were arrested in San Matías, a Bolivian city located near the Brazilian border. The arrests took place during an operation conducted by the Bolivian security forces to take control over the city after they were chased from it in June. The city is described as a “crime hotspot” for both Brazilian and Bolivian…
Operation Lionfish, an INTERPOL-led global effort against trafficking of illicit substances and drugs, was launched between 17 September and 8 October 2018, simultaneously across 93 countries. The operation resulted in the seizure of more than 55 tonnes of illicit substances including 35 tonnes of cocaine, five tonnes of heroin, 15 tonnes of cannabis and 430,000…
A report by Euromonitor International shows that the illicit market of alcohol is a growing source of income for criminal organisation in Latin America. According to the report, the annual illegal sales of alcohol amount to $4.8 billion. Colombia Attorney General has proposed a new disruption policy to fight increasing drug production in the country,…
A report from the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) critically analysed the UNODC 10-years plan to tackle drug trafficking and highlighted the human cost of the international war on drugs. According to the IDPC, despite UN efforts, drug-related deaths have increased 145% in the last decade. The US Department of Justice revealed a list of…
CRIMJUST and the Brazilian Federal Prosecution Services gathered on 15-19 October 2018 in Vienna, Austria, at the 9th Conference of the Parties to the Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (COP9) to announce the implementation of joint working groups aimed at fighting transnational crime in Latin America. …
