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Colombia's emerald industry continues to be tied to violence and organized crime
by Stephen Gill June 6, 2018
Colombia’s emerald industry has had trouble cutting links with organized crime and violence.
Decades after the “green wars” over control of the mines in eastern Colombia, the United States said Tuesday it had added eight businesses associated with emerald kingpin Pedro Rincon to its “kingpin list.”
Rincon, also known as “Pedro Orejas,” six of his brothers and his brother-in-law were put on what is essentially a blacklist of suspected drug traffickers prohibited from doing business with the US, amid investigations regarding alleged involvement in drug trafficking and money laundering.
The action against the Rincon family attempts to “shut off the flow of Colombian cocaine proceeds through the Rincon Castillo drug trafficking organization’s elaborate network of emerald mines and other seemingly legitimate enterprises,” according to the entity.
More:
https://colombiareports.com/colombias-emerald-industry-continues-to-be-tied-to-violence-and-organized-crime/
Younger Pedro Rincon