Illegal Borders: Criminal Governance in the Amazon Tri-Border Region

Transnational organized crime has made Amazonian cities such as Leticia (Colombia) and Tabatinga (Brazil) strategic centers of criminal governance. Previously serving as logistical stopovers for drug trafficking, these cities now serve as permanent bases for criminal groups such as the Brazilian Comando Vermelho (CV) and the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), which participate in various criminal markets in the rainforest region.

Criminal disputes across the local illegal ecosystem have made Leticia and Tabatinga some of the most violent urban centers in America. Tabatinga recorded a shocking murder rate of 95.9 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2023, while Leticia recorded 31.4, making them critical points of concern for regional security. The report highlights the links between urban crime and environmental degradation, with organized crime now playing a key role in deforestation and biodiversity loss in the Amazon. The CV currently has the upper hand in Leticia and Tabatinga. The group monitors a variety of illegal activities in the region, including drug trafficking, wildlife smuggling and illegal gold mining.

The report emphasizes that understanding the urban dynamics of the Amazon is crucial not only to combating organized crime, but also to global conservation efforts. The study calls for cross-border cooperation and information exchange between Brazil, Colombia and Peru. Additionally, greater federal support for violence reduction programs that focus on vocational mentoring of local youth and drug rehabilitation initiatives is critical to reducing the influence of criminal organizations on local communities.

This publication marks the debut of the GI-TOC Observatory on Illicit Economies in the Amazon Basin (Amazon-Obs) in its mission to support governments, media and researchers in combating transnational crime in this critical region.