Mexico
Mexico: notorious kingpin Caro Quintero freed
Mexico’s most notorious kingpin, Rafael Caro Quintero, was released from Puente Grande federal prison in Jalisco where he had been incarcerated for the past 28 years.
Tag: narco wars
The Andes
Colombia: coca production down as narcos diversify
The area planted with coca leaf in Colombia has fallen by 25% according to the UN—but experts fear armed narco networks are moving into illegal gold and emerald mining.
The Andes
Peru: police ‘death squad’ leader absolved
A court in Trujillo, Peru, issued a ruling absolving former National Police colonel Elidio Espinoza, who was charged with running a secret "death squad" within the force.
Peru: pro-coca lawmaker ordered imprisoned
A court in Lima issued an order of “preventative detention” against ex-lawmaker Nancy ObregĂłn, on suspicion of narco-trafficking and “collaboration with terrorism.”
Mexico
Violence surges in Tamaulipas: State Department
Murders in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas jumped more than 90% and kidnapping reports more than doubled over last year to the highest rate in the country.
Mexico
Michoacán: ‘graveyard’ of pledge to reduce Mexico narco-violence?
Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto’s pledge to reduce gangland violence is looking dubious as nearly 30 are killed in Michoacán fighting between narco-gunmen and federales.
The Andes
Colombia: strikes halt US coal giant Drummond
Indefinite strikes brought Drummond’s coal mining operations to a halt in Colombia, putting further pressure on the country’s economy amid a growing wave of labor actions.
Mexico
Mexico: Zetas boss busted; kid brother ascends?
Mexican naval forces captured Miguel Angel Treviño Morales AKA “Z-40,” head of the notorious Zetas cartel—but his younger brother, “Z-42,” is poised to be the new boss.
Southeast Asia
Burma: new Shan state opium eradication plan
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) announced a new peace initiative in Burma’s conflicted Shan State aimed at facilitating poppy eradication.
Afghanistan
UN: Afghanistan remains top opium producer
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) finds that Afghanistan continues to remain the world’s top opium cultivator, accounting for 75% of global illicit production.
The Andes
Colombia: ranchers fear ‘communist’ redistribution
Colombia's federation of cattle ranchers rejected the recent agrarian deal with the FARC, charging that it could lead to Venezuela-style expropriations of private property.
The Andes
Archaeologists race tomb-raiders in Peru
The archaeologists who unearthed a priceless pre-Inca burial chamber at Huarmey, Peru, were in a race with outlaw tomb-raiders who operate with impunity.