This week, InSight Crime assessed how the power of the Gaitanista Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia - AGC) could affect peace talks with the Colombian government, according to a report detailing the criminal group's expansion. Its growth, structure and eagerness to be considered a political actor threaten the “Total Peace” policy that seeks to end Colombia's conflict by negotiating with the country's armed and criminal actors.

In addition, we address the evolution of narco tanks into a powerful tactical tool for criminal groups in Mexico; analyze the use of influencers by an Argentine cyber-gang to legitimize illegal gambling websites; delve into why states of emergency are such a popular measure in Latin American and Caribbean countries; and explore the significance of the US sentencing of former Mexican public security chief Genaro García Luna for accepting bribes from drug traffickers.

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Power Play or Peace? AGC’s Role in Colombia’s Fragile Negotiations

The strength of Colombia’s powerful AGC criminal group will pose a serious challenge in nascent peace negotiations, according to a recent report, raising concerns the group lacks genuine interest in peace and may use the talks to solidify its criminal clout.

The nonprofit Fundación Ideas Para la Paz (FIP) published a report on October 7 about the Gaitanist Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia – AGC), also known as the Gaitanistas or Clan del Golfo, outlining the group’s growth over the last decade and how it complicates prospects for peace talks that restarted earlier this year.

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On October 8, InSight Crime received an honorable mention at the 2024 Maria Moors Cabot Prizes. Jeremy McDermott, co-founder of InSight Crime, addressed the audience and highlighted the importance of sources in the work the organization does in its coverage of organized crime.  

“Behind every story is a crucial player: our sources. They show heroic courage in talking to us”, McDermott said.

The LatAm Journalism Review digital magazine published by the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas covered the award ceremony and highlighted the moment.

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This Week's Criminal Profile: The Zetas

The Zetas, a group born out of deserters from an elite unit of the Mexican armed forces in the service of the Gulf Cartel, were the first to use narco tanks in the early 2010s. They went on to become one of Mexico's most powerful and feared armed groups until infighting and the loss of key leaders led to the organization's decline.

Now, the Zetas are a fragmented organization, united by little more than a name and increasingly dependent on local criminal revenues rather than the transnational flow of drugs.

Trending Topic: Coca Cultivation Continues to Expand Outside Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia

Coca, the raw plant ingredient needed to produce cocaine, is taking firmer root in Ecuador. The country's President Daniel Noboa claimed this week that coca cultivation has reached 2,000 hectares there. Criminal groups are pushing coca to new locations around the region.

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