Global Context
When people think of drug cartels they automatically think of Mexican cartels being that they are the most well-known and publicized cartels out there but what people don’t think about are the cartels that are spread across the rest of the globe. There are cartels all over the world, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, South Korea, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Japan, Italy, France, United States, Colombia, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Russia, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Afghanistan and Pakistan all have drug cartels.
To start the biggest and most well-known cartel is Sinaloa, whose leader, Joaquin Guzman Loera, known as "El Chapo", is considered the most powerful drug lord in the world, perhaps ever. The Sinaloa’s smuggle cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine and heroin by land or through tunnels into the US, often coming through Arizona.
The Yamaguchi-gumi is Japan's largest and most infamous yakuza organization. It is one of the largest criminal organizations in the world. According to the National Police Agency it had 20,400 active members and 18,600 associated members in 2007. It is, by far, the largest of the boryokudan groups, and its membership encompasses roughly 45% of the Japanese underworld. The Yamaguchi-gumi are among the world's wealthiest gangsters, bringing in billions of dollars a year from extortion, gambling, the sex industry, arms and drug trafficking. The Yamaguchi-gumi has its headquarters in Kobe, Japan, but it operates all across Japan and has overseas operations in Asia and the United States.
Solntsevskaya Bratva is a "Russian Mafia" or brotherhood, the largest of which is from the southern outskirts of Moscow. This brotherhood has about 5000 members that smuggle Heroin into Russia, Ukraine, and the US. Other crimes they are known for are Arms trafficking, arson, drug trafficking, extortion, forgery, fraud, human trafficking, identity theft, illegal immigration, money laundering, murder, pornography, and prostitution.
The 'Ndrangheta from Italy has become one of the biggest drug gangs in the world. Its annual income from cocaine importation and other businesses is estimated in the tens of billions of dollars. This group has about 10,000 members that smuggle cocaine and carry out other crimes in Australia, Canada, Africa, and parts of Europe.
Lastly, the Abergil family in Israel is a much smaller cartel because it is a family run cartel but they smuggle ecstasy into the US and other parts of Israel along with crimes such as car theft and murder.
All these cartels across the world are very powerful organizations that control a lot of territories with innocent people. Cartels such as these will do anything and everything to get what they want, which is money, no matter who gets in there way which is why drug cartels are so much more than just the illegal importation and exportation of drugs. These organizations commit so many other crimes including murder, robbery, kidnapping, torturing, and human trafficking.
To start the biggest and most well-known cartel is Sinaloa, whose leader, Joaquin Guzman Loera, known as "El Chapo", is considered the most powerful drug lord in the world, perhaps ever. The Sinaloa’s smuggle cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine and heroin by land or through tunnels into the US, often coming through Arizona.
The Yamaguchi-gumi is Japan's largest and most infamous yakuza organization. It is one of the largest criminal organizations in the world. According to the National Police Agency it had 20,400 active members and 18,600 associated members in 2007. It is, by far, the largest of the boryokudan groups, and its membership encompasses roughly 45% of the Japanese underworld. The Yamaguchi-gumi are among the world's wealthiest gangsters, bringing in billions of dollars a year from extortion, gambling, the sex industry, arms and drug trafficking. The Yamaguchi-gumi has its headquarters in Kobe, Japan, but it operates all across Japan and has overseas operations in Asia and the United States.
Solntsevskaya Bratva is a "Russian Mafia" or brotherhood, the largest of which is from the southern outskirts of Moscow. This brotherhood has about 5000 members that smuggle Heroin into Russia, Ukraine, and the US. Other crimes they are known for are Arms trafficking, arson, drug trafficking, extortion, forgery, fraud, human trafficking, identity theft, illegal immigration, money laundering, murder, pornography, and prostitution.
The 'Ndrangheta from Italy has become one of the biggest drug gangs in the world. Its annual income from cocaine importation and other businesses is estimated in the tens of billions of dollars. This group has about 10,000 members that smuggle cocaine and carry out other crimes in Australia, Canada, Africa, and parts of Europe.
Lastly, the Abergil family in Israel is a much smaller cartel because it is a family run cartel but they smuggle ecstasy into the US and other parts of Israel along with crimes such as car theft and murder.
All these cartels across the world are very powerful organizations that control a lot of territories with innocent people. Cartels such as these will do anything and everything to get what they want, which is money, no matter who gets in there way which is why drug cartels are so much more than just the illegal importation and exportation of drugs. These organizations commit so many other crimes including murder, robbery, kidnapping, torturing, and human trafficking.