Investigation: Latin American groups expand their European reach
A new investigation and UK crime assessment point to deeper links between South American suppliers and European networks.
Update
A report reviewed by the Guardian indicated that Brazil’s Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) may operate in 16 European countries, including the UK. (The Guardian)
Latin American organised crime groups are expanding their presence across Europe, according to a Guardian investigation drawing on police, intelligence and court material from several countries. The findings matter to Britain because the National Crime Agency says cocaine supply chains linking South America to the UK are becoming more collaborative and international.
The Guardian said criminal groups from Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Mexico and the United States had been identified in at least 12 European countries. It reported a 471% rise in the quantity of cocaine seized between 2014 and 2024, alongside the dismantling of additional local laboratories that process cocaine derivatives. The investigation identified groups including Mexico’s Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels, Brazil’s Primeiro Comando da Capital and Comando Vermelho, Colombia’s Clan del Golfo and dissident Farc factions, and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua.
The strongest warning about the scale of the change comes with an important qualification. The Guardian reviewed an unpublished report from prosecutors in São Paulo, partly based on Brazilian intelligence material, which said that the Primeiro Comando da Capital operated in 16 European countries, including the UK. That figure is not a publicly released European dataset, and it does not establish that the group has a large or dominant cell in Britain.
The NCA’s 2026 assessment gives a separate, UK-focused picture. It says Western Balkan organised crime groups are still highly likely to control most of the cocaine chain from importation to wholesale distribution in Britain, while maintaining direct relationships with South American suppliers. It also says legitimate trade links between Brazil and West Africa have created more opportunities to move cocaine through commercial and container shipping.
The agency describes the supply as increasingly networked, with groups sharing transport routes and risk. That does not mean Latin American organisations have replaced European groups. Rather, the available evidence points to partnerships, brokers and logistics arrangements that can cross several borders. The NCA also says cocaine production and consumption are at their highest levels, while prices have fallen — a combination that can increase pressure on law enforcement and public health.
United Nations data supports the wider picture of expanding supply, although the figures measure production potential rather than the amount reaching consumers. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that potential global cocaine manufacture reached about 4,100 tonnes in 2024, with a range of 3,800 to 4,700 tonnes, while coca cultivation reached about 385,100 hectares.
Recent enforcement action shows how authorities are responding. Europol said an operation involving Ecuadorian and Spanish agencies led to 20 arrests and 23 property searches on 8 October. It linked the suspected network to logistics hubs in Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands, and said more than 43 tonnes had been seized across 13 related operations between 2022 and 2026. Those arrested remain suspects unless courts decide otherwise.
For Britain, the central issue is not whether one foreign cartel has taken control of the market. It is whether international criminal partnerships are making supply chains more resilient, while the UK remains a profitable destination. The NCA’s assessment, the Europol operation and the Guardian investigation all point to stronger cross-border cooperation among law-enforcement agencies, but the fact that part of the reporting is unpublished means the exact reach of individual groups remains uncertain.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- The Guardian reported that Latin American criminal groups have been identified in at least 12 European countries, while an unpublished Brazilian report it reviewed claimed PCC activity in 16 countries including the UK.
- The NCA says Western Balkan groups are highly likely to retain the greatest control over the cocaine supply chain into Britain, while working with South American suppliers.
- Europol reported 20 arrests and 23 searches in an Ecuador-Spain operation on 8 October, linked to a wider series of seizures.
- UNODC data shows record potential cocaine manufacture and coca cultivation in 2024.
Left
Arguments The priority should be to treat organised crime as both a public-health and economic problem. Efforts to disrupt financing and labour exploitation, and to interrupt supply chains, should be combined with treatment, prevention and international cooperation rather than relying mainly on punishment.
Values Public health, social justice, human rights and reducing inequality.
Consequences A predominantly punitive response could displace routes, deepen exploitation and leave demand and drug-related harm largely untouched.
Centre
Arguments Britain should support intelligence-sharing, targeted border enforcement and joint investigations, while requiring clear evidence before expanding powers or attaching broad claims to particular nationalities or communities.
Values Institutional competence, proportionality, evidence and accountability.
Consequences Careful enforcement may be slower, but it reduces the risk of misdirected operations, wasted resources and public distrust caused by overstating uncertain intelligence.
Right
Arguments The government should prioritise border security, port scrutiny, asset seizure, tougher sentencing and the removal of foreign offenders after due process. Reducing Britain’s attractiveness as a destination should be central to the strategy.
Values Public order, deterrence, national sovereignty and protection of communities.
Consequences A stronger enforcement approach could raise the cost of trafficking, but critics would warn that it may push activity into new routes without reducing demand or addressing international supply.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Priya Shah — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The article is supported by a same-day investigation and recent official assessments from the NCA, Europol and UNODC. The least certain claim is clearly attributed to an unpublished Brazilian report and is not presented as independently verified fact.
- confirmed The Guardian reported that Latin American criminal groups had been identified in at least 12 European countries. — The investigation lists identified groups and countries based on police, intelligence and court material. source
- uncertain An unpublished São Paulo prosecutors’ report reviewed by The Guardian said the PCC operated in 16 European countries, including the UK. — The claim is accurately attributed, but the underlying report is unpublished and not independently available. source
- confirmed The NCA says Western Balkan organised crime groups are highly likely to retain the greatest control of the cocaine chain into the UK and maintain links with South American suppliers. — This is stated in the NCA’s 2026 transnational serious and organised crime assessment. source
- confirmed The NCA says Brazil-West Africa trade links create opportunities for cocaine smuggling through commercial and container shipping. — The assessment describes those routes and the role of Western Balkan and Brazilian groups. source
- confirmed UNODC estimates potential global cocaine manufacture at about 4,100 tonnes in 2024, with coca cultivation at about 385,100 hectares. — Both figures appear in the UNODC World Drug Report 2026 data portal. source
- confirmed Europol said an operation on 8 October produced 20 arrests and 23 searches, and that related operations seized more than 43 tonnes between 2022 and 2026. — The figures are given in Europol’s release on Operation CANTABRIA. source
- confirmed The reported increase in cocaine seizures between 2014 and 2024 was 471%. — This figure is reported by The Guardian’s investigation and is presented as its finding, not as an NCA or UNODC statistic. source
Editor's note
The same-day investigation is supplemented by official NCA, Europol and UNODC material. The claim that the PCC operates in 16 European countries comes from an unpublished São Paulo prosecutors’ report reviewed by The Guardian and is not independently published evidence of a large UK cell.Sources
- Latin American organised crime ‘may operate in 16 European countries’ — The Guardian
- National Strategic Assessment 2026: Transnational serious and organised crime — National Crime Agency
- European and Ecuadorian cooperation leads to 20 arrests in major hit against drug trafficking — Europol
- World Drug Report 2026 search: cocaine manufacture and seizures — United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
More on this in other media
- Sky News — „organised crime”
- BBC News — „organised crime”
- The Guardian — „organised crime”