Weekly InSight
This week, InSight Crime looks at the secretive world of cattle smuggling, with beef coming from Central America making its way onto consumers’ plates in Mexico and the United States via illegal networks. This new three-part series unveils the entire illegal cattle supply chain, as well as how it helps mask cocaine trafficking and money laundering.  

Elsewhere, we look at how Guatemala has become an important staging post for the powerful Jalisco Cartel, just as the country’s justice system is further weakened with the re-election of a controversial Attorney General. New revelations show why El Salvador’s security gains are at risk, Mexican and Colombian envoys are helping to expand Europe’s cocaine and meth markets,  while Peru is trying to get its hands on all the coca leaf it can. 

Cash Cows - The Inner Workings of Cattle Trafficking from Central America to Mexico

The illegal trafficking of cattle, across country borders, has spread north from the natural reserves of Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala, to enter the food supply chain in Mexico and even the United States.

This trade has resulted in the deforestation of thousands of hectares and numerous acts of violence against Indigenous communities. Little is being done to contain this growing illegal economy, which helps masks other criminal activities including cocaine trafficking and money laundering.

Featured

The Jalisco Cartel's Quiet Expansion in Guatemala

It started with a video posted on social media last September, in which heavily armed men, with thick Mexican accents, claimed allegiance to the CJNG and accused Guatemalan police of stealing a drug shipment.

“We’re coming for you,” said the masked subject recording the video, which was directed at police. “You have 24 hours to return everything.”

Read the analysis >

NewsAnalysis

Latin American Experts Help European Gangs Produce Cocaine at Home


Europe’s increasing demand for cocaine has propelled changes in the global drug production network... 

Super Labs and Master Chefs - The Changing Face of Europe's Drug Trade


Cocaine processing has taken root on European soil, Mexican and Dutch synthetic drug traffickers have...
Controversial Attorney General Outlasts Guatemala's Anti-Corruption Efforts
Crafty Trafficking - How Cocaine is Flowing Between LatAm and Australia
New Revelations Herald Grim Future for El Salvador's Security
Can Peru Counter Drug Trafficking by Buying All the Coca?
Will Soaring Arrests in El Salvador Overwhelm its Prisons?
Ecuador's Police Being Assassinated in Record Numbers 
Indigenous Communities in Rural Mexico Get No Help Against Constant Criminal Threats

Criminal Actors

Profiles of some of the notable criminal personalities and groups that have marked this week.

Browse by country >

CJNG

The Jalisco Cartel New Generation (Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación - CJNG) is a criminal group that has evolved as a...

MS13

The Mara Salvatrucha, or MS13, is perhaps the most notorious street gang in the Western Hemisphere. While it has its...

Media Mentions

MAY 16, 2022
BBC



"InSight Crime asserts that this Honduran region [the department of Colón] is strategic for the transportation of drugs brought by South American cartels, from Colombia to Guatemala, where they are picked up by Mexican cartels that eventually smuggle them into the US."

BBC World refers to InSight Crime’s coverage of Honduras’ Montes Bobadilla drug clan.

Impact

Coverage of Fallen Paraguay Prosecutor Makes Headlines

 
The murder of leading anti-crime prosecutor, Marcelo Pecci, while on honeymoon in Colombia, has drawn attention to the evolution of organized crime in Paraguay. While 17 people have been arrested in connection with this murder, there is still little clarity about the assassination. InSight Crime’s analysis of Pecci’s murder, as well as our coverage of Paraguay’s main criminal groups, has made headlines in Paraguay, the United States, Colombia, Argentina and Mexico.

Read our coverage of Pecci’s murder >


Meanwhile, InSight Crime’s landmark report on Venezuela’s Cocaine Revolution continues to have international repercussions after it revealed the extent to which the country has become a cocaine producer. Media organizations in Spain, Mexico and Colombia referenced our report to discuss the latest happenings in Venezuela, such as Russian weapons allegedly making their way to guerrilla groups. Additionally, opposition politicians directly referred to our investigation during a parliamentary debate to warn about the government’s involvement in drug trafficking. 

Read our coverage of Pecci’s murder >
 

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InSight Crime · Medellin · Medellin 0000 · Colombia