The Web of Illicit Economies Ensnaring Durán, Ecuador
At the heart of Durán’s transformation into Ecuador’s epicenter of organized crime lies a complex web of interconnected criminal economies.…
Kings, Killers, and Cabras: Profiling Durán’s Criminal Players
Durán’s criminal underworld is dominated by the fierce rivalry between the Latin Kings and the Chone Killers. Their differences —…
Tapestry of Crime and Complicity: Mapping Durán’s Power Players
A multitude of actors play a role in security in Durán, including political, bureaucratic, and economic elites, civil society, and…
A Short History of Durán, Ecuador
Durán was a sparsely populated, remote, agricultural outpost of the municipality of Guayaquil before the completion of the national railway…
Durán, Ecuador’s New Crime Capital
Durán, a municipality of over 300,000 inhabitants in Ecuador’s coastal Guayas province, has undergone a dramatic transformation from a thriving…
The Operation
Operation Trueno began on the night of April 20, 2022, when around 800 police and military officials traveling in 30…
The Castillo Family
Antonio and Sandra live in Altagracia de Orituco with their two grandchildren, aged 7 and 1. One of the children…
The Fernández Family
Andrés is a proud Chavista, and member of the government-run Bolivarian Militias. He and his wife live next door to…
Carlos Ramírez
Carlos is a musician and farm laborer from Altagracia de Orituco. He left to go live in Caracas, but he…
In Battle to Slow Precursor Chemicals in Mexico, Public-Private Partnerships are a Path Not Taken
It was days before Super Bowl LVI in February 2022, the biggest guacamole day of the year in the United…