Soaring Gold Prices Draw Illicit Miners—and Armed Gangs—to Colombia's Jungles

08-06-2025

PUERTO CLAVER, Colombia—The lure of even a few specks of gold compels Elizabeth Mosquera awake before dawn to slog to a muddy pit, where she wades into waist-deep water and starts to pan. 'What you earn in a month in a regular job, you can make here in an hour or two,' said Mosquera, 47 years old. In Colombia, the prospecting economy is driving revenue to drug-trafficking organizations that are already awash in proceeds from the record supplies of cocaine they are exporting to the U.S. and Europe, law-enforcement officials said.

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Colombia arrests alleged leader of Italian mafia in Latin America

Yahoo

4 hours ago

Yahoo

Colombia arrests alleged leader of Italian mafia in Latin America

Colombian authorities have captured an alleged leader of the Italian 'Ndrangheta mafia in Latin America who is accused of overseeing cocaine shipments and running illegal trafficking routes to Europe. Police on Friday identified the suspect as Giuseppe Palermo, also known as 'Peppe', an Italian national who was wanted under an Interpol red notice, which called for his arrest in 196 countries. He was nabbed on the street in Colombia's capital Bogota during a coordinated operation between Colombian, Italian and British authorities, as well as Europol, the European Union's law enforcement agency, according to an official report. Palermo is believed to be part of 'one of the most tightly knit cells' of the 'Ndrangheta mafia, said Carlos Fernando Triana, head of the Colombian police. The 'Ndrangheta, one of Italy's most powerful, ruthless and clandestine criminal organisations, has increasingly wielded its influence overseas and is widely accused of importing cocaine into Europe. The suspect 'not only led the purchase of large shipments of cocaine in Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador, but also controlled the maritime and land routes used to transport the drugs to European markets', Triana added. Illegal cocaine production reached 3,708 tonnes in 2023, an increase of nearly 34% from the previous year, driven mainly by the expansion of coca leaf cultivation in Colombia, according to the United Nations. The global illicit drug trade, including cocaine, is estimated to be worth more than $500bn annually.

Colombia authorities arrest alleged leader of Italian 'ndrangheta mafia in Latin America

Yahoo

5 hours ago

Yahoo

Colombia authorities arrest alleged leader of Italian 'ndrangheta mafia in Latin America

Colombian authorities said Friday they captured an alleged leader of the Italian 'ndrangheta mafia in Latin America who is accused of overseeing cocaine shipments and managing illegal trafficking routes to Europe.

Colombian authorities arrest alleged leader of Italian mafia in Latin America

Washington Post

19 hours ago

Washington Post

Colombian authorities arrest alleged leader of Italian mafia in Latin America

BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombian authorities said Friday they captured an alleged leader of the Italian 'ndrangheta mafia in Latin America who is accused of overseeing cocaine shipments and managing illegal trafficking routes to Europe. Police identified the suspect as Giuseppe Palermo, also known as 'Peppe,' an Italian who was wanted under an Interpol red notice, which called for his arrest in 196 countries.