Archive - Seasons of Crime

How Blackwater Conquered Latin America: Chapter Two - The Coup That Wasn't

In 2019, Erik Prince offered a private army to remove Nicolás Maduro by force. What followed was one of the most audacious coup proposals in modern…

Jul 31 •

Why a Pizza Emoji Fuels Misinformation About Cartel Wars

The obsession with reducing cartel factions to individual emojis has led to a messy and inaccurate online discourse about who might be winning or…

Jul 11 •

How Blackwater Conquered Latin America: Chapter One - Three Decades of Ideology

From Nicaragua to Colombia to Mexico, Erik Prince carved out much of his political ideology, distrust of government, and mercenary model in Latin…

Jul 7 •

So is Julio César Chávez Jr. Actually a Sinaloa Cartel Member?

Chávez. Jr is wanted in Mexico for arms trafficking, married to the ex-wife of El Chapo's son, and friends with other Sinaloa Cartel bosses. But do his…

Jul 4 •

June 2025

Thailand Legalized Weed. So Why is it Handing it Back to Crime Bosses?

Thailand build a thriving, if chaotic, legal marijuana market in just three years. Now, ti's undoing it all. And old smuggling mechanisms are rapidly…

Jun 30 •

May 2025

Core, Franchises and Copycats - The Triple Threat Posed by Tren de Aragua

As World of Crime's book on Tren de Aragua is released, we analyze the Anti-Tren phenomenon and look at what this means for the gang in the United…

May 22 •

The Origins of Tren de Aragua - Preview Chapter

This is the first chapter of World of Crime's upcoming book, Tren de Aragua - The Guide to America's Growing Criminal Threat. Link to get a review copy…

May 7 •

April 2025

RFK Jr.'s Naloxone Cuts Could Kill Hundreds of Americans. Here's Why.

The federal Narcan programme costs $56 million. It has led to a dramatic reversal in fentanyl overdose deaths and trained many first responders. Now…

Apr 29 •

From Naples to Rio: How Your Parking Space is Quietly Funding Organized Crime

Across Italy, Nigeria, India and Brazil, World of Crime explains how parking mafias are the visible tip of a far deeper criminal ecosystem.

Apr 22 •

REPORT: Shadow Economies - How President Trump's Tariffs Empower Organized Crime

Since reclaiming the Oval Office in January 2025, President Donald Trump's signature trade policy—a barrage of aggressive tariffs intended to safeguard…

Apr 8 •

The Ardillos: How a Family Built One of Mexico's Deadliest Gangs

Last year, the mayor of Chilpancingo was decapitated a week into his term. The group who killed him, the Ardillos, have been building up their power…

Apr 2 •

March 2025

Marked for Deportation - Why Finding Gang Members by Tattoos is Quick, Easy, and Wrong

World of Crime traces back the history of tattoos being used to profile suspected gang members from MS-13 all the way to Tren de Aragua

Mar 25 •

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