How a Fuel-Theft Economy Built the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel
The Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel emerged from Guanajuato’s vulnerable energy infrastructure, a profitable fuel-theft economy, local networks and institutional…
Varikons archive
Investigations
Evidence-led reporting on complex stories that demand a closer look.
The Quiet Machinery of Cartel Control
Cartel power is sustained not only by violence, but by a daily system of surveillance, extortion, coercion and fear that…
The Quiet Machinery of Criminal Recruitment in Mexico
Criminal recruitment rarely begins with an obvious threat. It often starts with economic desperation, social pressure, false job offers, and…
Allende, Coahuila: The Massacre That Left a Town Living with Silence
In March 2011, Allende, Coahuila, became the scene of one of Mexico’s most devastating episodes of cartel violence. The destruction…
The Silence Around Zacatecas’ Fourteen Missing People
Fourteen disappearances in Zacatecas expose a landscape shaped by fear, alleged collusion, erased evidence, and families who refuse to let…