This week, InSight Crime released the final episode of our first investigative podcast series: The Shadow of El Dorado: Unearthing Colombia’s Blood Gold. This seven-part podcast dives into the disturbing shadowlands of the global economy in the Colombian mining town of Segovia, documenting how savage capitalism runs wild as the poor kill each other and the powerful get rich.

In the United States, the Trump administration has hit pause on the enforcement of two major laws that are designed to clamp down on corrupt practices and the use of shell companies to launder illicit funds. The United States is already a major financial center for organized crime, and the latest moves could further embolden the criminal groups who use the country to clean and hold their dirty cash.  

We also explain what the grizzly discovery of an extermination camp in Mexico tells us about the recruitment methods of Jalisco Cartel New Generation (CJNG); explore why a new bill in Brazil to curb public funds for music that references crime is likely to flounder; and unpack what two new organized crime reports tell us about changing criminal dynamics in Latin America.  

Final Episode: The Shadow of El Dorado

You can listen to this final episode, catch up on the whole series, and explore our extensive additional content and investigative material on our website now. You can also listen on Amazon Music, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. Help us get the word out by sharing, subscribing to our channels or leaving a rating or review!

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Featured

How Trump’s Anti-Money Laundering Rollback Could Help LatAm Criminals

Experts say that the administration of President Donald Trump may be making it easier for criminals to get away with money laundering and bribery by abandoning the enforcement of laws that crack down on shell companies and corporate graft.  

The Trump administration has said it will largely stop enforcing two key laws in the United States: the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), which aimed to curb money laundering through shell companies, and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), which bans bribery in international business deals.

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InSight Crime’s 2024 Homicide Round-Up was cited by Ecuadorian presidential candidate Luisa González during a fiery debate with incumbent President Daniel Noboa ahead of the country’s elections slated for April 13. The candidates clashed on measures to tackle the country’s criminal groups, with González briefly waving a printed copy of the Homicide Roundup at cameras while grilling Noboa on his security record.

Ecuador registered a homicide rate of 38.8 per 100,000 people, the highest in Latin America for the second year running. InSight Crime’s incisive analysis has helped explain the country’s chaotic criminal environment, an essential first step to tackling the formidable security challenges that await the next president.

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This Week's Criminal Profile: Guerreros Unidos

Mexican security forces arrested former municipal police officer Rey Flores Hernández this week for his alleged participation in the mass kidnapping and disappearance of 43 students from Ayotzinapa in 2014. The students were attacked by local police before being hauled off and murdered by the Guerreros Unidos.

The Guerreros Unidos are an important player in the production and trafficking of heroin, according to US authorities, and have been behind several episodes of exceptional violence in Mexico. The Ayotzinapa kidnapping exposed the group’s deep control over corrupt state authorities, including public officials, the police, and the military.

Trending: Record Gold Prices May Fuel Illegal Mining in Latin America

The price of gold surpassed $3,000 per ounce for the first time in history this month, which may increase the incentives for criminal groups to engage in illegal mining activity. Despite some sputtering signs of progress, the illegal gold trade remains a booming criminal economy in Latin America. The illicit minerals extracted by criminal groups are regularly laundered into the supply chains of the world’s largest multinational companies, as our podcast series explores.

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