On the Radar: Brazil’s ‘Escobar,’ Haiti’s Latest Massacre, and Venezuela’s Former First Lady Under Scrutiny

This week’s On the Radar highlights Haiti’s latest massacre by the Gran Grif gang, the trial of Sérgio Roberto de Carvalho, dubbed Brazil’s “Escobar,” for his alleged role in a major cocaine trafficking operation, and the growing legal troubles of Venezuela’s former First Lady Cilia Flores, who faces narcotics charges in the United States.

Transcript

In this week’s On the Radar, we’re asking:

What does Haiti’s latest gang massacre tell us about the country’s criminal landscape?

What does the trial of a suspected trafficker known as Brazil’s Pablo Escobar reveal about the cocaine pipeline to Europe?

And how accomplished a criminal leader was the former first lady of Venezuela, Cilia Flores?

Haiti Gang Crisis Deepens with Massacre

First, in beleaguered Haiti, members of the Gran Grif gang attacked a town in Artibonite, killing at least 70 people and wounding 30.

Gran Grif is one of the most brutal groups operating in Artibonite. In 2024, the gang killed at least 155 people in the town of Port Sondé.

This is the latest attack in years of gang crisis. Massacres often occur when a gang thinks civilians are collaborating with another armed group or when it simply wants to retaliate against or seize territory from a rival.

The initial reports suggest this attack follows that pattern, though details are still emerging.

Brazil’s ‘Pablo Escobar’ Goes to Trial

The trial of an alleged drug trafficker from Brazil Sérgio Roberto de Carvalho began in Belgium this week. For years, Carvalho, who has been dubbed Brazil’s Pablo Escobar, used false identities, quiet corruption, and even faked his own death. 

His case shows how low-profile brokers are replacing well-known capos in the drug trade, and how key Brazil now is in the cocaine pipeline to Europe.

Venezuela’s Former First Lady Under Fire

And finally, Cilia Flores, Venezuela’s former first lady, is under renewed scrutiny for the Garden of Flowers trafficking network that she allegedly ran during her and her husband – Nicolas Maduro’s – time in power. New reporting by the Wall Street Journal says Flores rewarded family members with drug routes, state contracts, and impunity and helped them to fly drug shipments out of the presidential hangar at the international airport in Caracas.

The report on Flores’ role in Venezuela shines light on the important part women play in organized crime, which is so often underestimated due to gender stereotypes.

That’s it for this week’s On the Radar – don’t miss our criminal profiles on all of Venezuela’s key players, as well as the cocaine pipeline to Europe and Haiti’s criminal landscape. We’ll be back with more next week.