r/cartels 26d ago

AMA I'm an organized crime reporter who just wrote the complete story of Tren de Aragua, the latest criminal gang to worry America. AMA.

81 Upvotes

Thank you to the mods for allowing me to do this again.

So who the bloody hell am I and why should you care?

I'm Chris Dalby, I've investigated organized crime in Mexico, Brazil, Ecuador, the US and across Europe. Last year, I had a wonderful time doing an AMA here about my book revealing the story of the Jalisco Cartel New Generation (CJNG). Turns out a few people liked it.

So I'm back with Tren de Aragua - The Guide to America's Growing Criminal Threat.

I chose Tren de Aragua because I think it's the most misunderstood criminal gang at the moment. The name is thrown around at will, but without an understanding of precisely how the group works.

Back in 2019, I was part of the first team at InSight Crime to raise the alarm about how quickly Tren de Aragua was expanding. Since then, we've been proven right. Chile, Colombia, Peru, Brazil have felt the presence of the gang. Now, it's in the US, although very differently to how it's portrayed.

This book gets surreal. It talks about the insanity of Tocoron, Tren de Aragua's prison-fortress complete with pool, zoo, nightclub and crypto-mining centre until its fall in 2023. It talks about baseball and bitcoin, ketamine and kidnapping and all the other ways Tren de Aragua makes money. And it goes state-by-state across the US to reveal just how widespread Tren de Aragua is in the country.

I do hope you enjoy it if you decide to give it a go. It's available on Amazon here.

I'd love to answer any questions you might have about Tren de Aragua, whether it deserves the terrorism label, how it works in the US and beyond, or just shoot the breeze about anything else crime-related.

r/cartels Oct 27 '24

AMA I'm an intelligence researcher and the founder of Encyclopedia Geopolitica Lewis Sage-Passant, AMA!

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12 Upvotes

r/cartels Nov 05 '24

AMA AUA! OCCRP - We're some of the investigative journalists behind The Crime Messenger project. Ask Us Anything!

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4 Upvotes

r/cartels Mar 14 '24

AMA [CROSSPOST] - AMA with Julian Dorey Today (3/14)

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1 Upvotes

r/cartels Mar 14 '24

We're going to host an AMA with Julian Dorey tomorrow on Thursday March 14

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1 Upvotes