The Gaitanist Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AGC) is Colombia’s most powerful criminal organization.
Authorities estimate the group has more than 7,000 members today, giving it the size and power of an army.
Born from the remnants of Colombia’s paramilitary armies in 2006, the AGC has grown into a sprawling network that dominates drug trafficking, illegal mining, and migrant smuggling across northern Colombia.
It has forged ties with Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, Italy’s ‘Ndrangheta, and Albanian mafias. These alliances keep the AGC’s cocaine flowing to an ever-expanding list of global markets.
After the 2021 capture of its notorious leader, Dairo Antonio Úsuga David, alias “Otoniel,” the AGC quickly regrouped under Jobanis de Jesús Ávila Villadiego, alias “Chiquito Malo.”
But who is Chiquito Malo? And how did he become the leader behind Colombia’s criminal powerhouse?
Read the story of the kingpin pulling the strings behind one of Colombia’s most dominant criminal groups.
