Weekly InSight
This week, InSight Crime analyzes what could be an historic moment in Colombia, as the National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberación Nacional – ELN) and the government under newly inaugurated President Gustavo Petro appear willing to restart peace talks despite several previously failed negotiations. Petro’s experience as a former guerrilla offers hope of understanding between the sides, but the ELN’s ambitious political and economic demands may once again derail the talks.

We also discuss the implications of the release of accused drug lord and former paramilitary commander, Guillermo León Acevedo Giraldo, alias "Memo Fantasma,” from pretrial detention in Colombia. And we investigate what Uruguay’s largest-ever meth seizure means for the future of the Latin America-Europe drug trade.

Featured

Can the ELN and Colombia's Government Chart a New Path Towards Peace?

Colombia's last remaining guerrilla group may be the lynchpin to future negotiations the Colombian government is expected to enter into with a number of armed actors as part of a peace proposal by the new administration.

During his August 7 inauguration speech, Colombian President Gustavo Petro once again called on the country's armed groups to "lay down their arms," a rallying cry he repeated during his presidential campaign and reinforced further once elected president.

Read the analysis >

NewsAnalysis

Memo Fantasma Freed from Colombian Prison


Accused paramilitary drug lord Guillermo León Acevedo Giraldo, alias "Memo Fantasma," has been granted his liberty from a maximum-security prison in Bogotá after winning his release from pre-trial... 

Uruguay Makes Historic Seizure of European Meth


What may have been the largest-ever shipment of European methamphetamine to reach Latin America has been seized in Uruguay, marking a potential turning point in the synthetic drug trade between...
Why is Brazil’s Highway Police Suddenly Killing So Many People?
United States Suddenly Keen to See Guatemala Extradite Human Smugglers
Northern Chile Struggling to Contain Skyrocketing Homicide Rate
Questions Abound in Killing of Local Police Chief in Sinaloa, Mexico
Guatemala Sex Traffickers Earn Millions Through Deception

Impact

Criminal Enterprise on the High Seas

 
Last week, InSight Crime published the second half of an extensive investigation into Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing that plagues the waters of nine Latin American countries. Among the stories were how Suriname’s flourishing black market for fishing licenses drives down fish stocks, the tragic tale of Costa Rica’s attempts to protect its waters with radar, and the labor abuses that lead to the deaths of crew members in Uruguay.

The second part of the investigation was covered widely by Latin American media, including in Uruguay, Mexico, and Argentina. US Ambassador to Venezuela James Story also shared coverage of our investigation.

On September 9, we’ll be hosting a conference online and in Washington DC with the Center for Latin American & Latino Studies at the American University. More details to follow.

Read both parts of our IUU fishing investigation:
Part one >
Part two >
 

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

Browse by country >

ELN

The National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberación Nacional - ELN) is one of the two main guerrilla armies with...

Sinaloa Cartel

The Sinaloa Cartel, often described as the largest and most powerful drug trafficking organization in the...

Media Mentions
AUGUST 3, 2022
FINANCIAL TIMES
"The military and police were already pretty terrified of a Petro government and now with Iván Velásquez as defense minister, they’re likely to be even more so."

InSight Crime Co-director Jeremy McDermott spoke to the Financial Times.

Our Trending Topics 
MEMO FANTASMA
SYNTHETIC DRUGS
CRIMINAL MIGRATION
COLOMBIA
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InSight Crime · Medellin · Medellin 0000 · Colombia