Organized Crime

Brazil's Federal Police launched an operation on Wednesday (25) to dismantle credit frauds against banks including Caixa, Banco do Brasil, Bradesco, Santander, and Safra. Main suspect Thiago Branco de Azevedo, known as Ralado, remains at large after 21 arrest warrants were issued. Fictor Group executives were also targeted in searches.

March 24, 2026 በAI የተዘገበ

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva enacted the Anti-Faction Bill, now the Raul Jungmann Law, on Tuesday (24) with vetoes to provisions punishing independent agents for grave faction-like acts and allocating seized assets to states. The law introduces new offenses against ultraviolent criminal organizations, featuring harsh penalties and restrictions on prison benefits.

Federal authorities detained Tequila's mayor, Diego Rivera Navarro, along with three municipal officials on February 5, 2026, for alleged extortion and ties to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). The operation, part of Operation Enjambre, stems from citizen complaints about corruption in the town hall. Political figures, including Morena's leadership and Jalisco's governor, hailed the action and foreshadowed further probes.

February 01, 2026 በAI የተዘገበ

Jesús Gutiérrez Guzmán, cousin of Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán, was arrested in Madrid in 2012 following an elaborate FBI operation posing as Italian mafiosi. The mission, called Dark Waters, spanned three years and involved negotiations to expand the Sinaloa Cartel's cocaine trafficking to Europe. Gutiérrez, acting as the cartel's representative, fell into the trap that ended with the seizure of 346 kilos of drugs.

One week after the US capture of Nicolás Maduro, Brazil's PT has intensified attacks on the right-wing opposition, accusing them of supporting foreign interventions, while exposing internal party rifts over the chavista regime. Experts see minimal disruption to regional drug trafficking from the event.

January 10, 2026 በAI የተዘገበ

U.S. authorities have filed new charges against Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympian turned alleged drug kingpin, including murder and witness tampering. The indictment, announced on November 19, 2025, reveals a plot to kill a cooperating witness and details Wedding's vast cocaine trafficking network. Despite raids and arrests, Wedding remains at large, with law enforcement believing he is in central Mexico.