New Investigation

El Salvador’s (Perpetual) State of Emergency: How Bukele’s Government Overpowered Gangs

#regimendeexcepción

Dear Reader

InSight Crime is pleased to announce the launch of our latest investigation, “El Salvador’s (Perpetual) State of Emergency: How Bukele’s Government Overpowered Gangs.” 

Our researchers spent nine months investigating how Bukele’s ruthless gang crackdown has disrupted the operations of the country’s main street gangs: the MS13 and Barrio 18. Read the full investigation, available on our website.

Chapters

1. How Bukele’s Government Overpowered Gangs: Summary + Major Findings

2. The Road to El Salvador’s State of Emergency

3. ‘Too Many Soldiers’: How El Salvador’s Crackdown Succeeded Where Others Failed

4. Gangs on the Run: How Bukele’s Crackdown Drove Gangs Underground 

5. Keeping a Lid on Prisonsi

6. The Future Looks Bleak for El Salvador’s Gangs

The gangs, once a dominant criminal force, have been pummeled during the most aggressive security crackdown ever seen in El Salvador. Sweeping arrests have decimated gang ranks. Gang members not in jail have scattered to nearby countries or gone into hiding. The gangs have all but vanished from the streets, relinquishing strategic territories and lucrative extortion rackets they had controlled for decades.

But remnants of the gangs remain, and there are questions about whether they could eventually mutate into new criminal groups or reclaim territories if and when the crackdown eventually eases.

Today, we present the most complete study to date on how the inner workings of the MS13 and Barrio 18 have been altered as a result of Bukele’s draconian crackdown, which shows little signs of slowing down as it approaches its two-year mark.

We invite you to read our six-part investigation, available on our website.

Regards, 

The InSight Crime Team 

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