Abstract

ALVEAR GALINDO, María Guadalupe; GIRALDO DURAN, Angélica; RAMIREZ GUTIERREZ, Sandy  and  VALADEZ HERNANDEZ, Carlos. Dispute over territory, organized crime and spatial autocorrelation of homicides in Veracruz, Mexico, 2001-2018. Rev. colomb. soc. [online]. 2022, vol.45, n.2, pp.223-251.  Epub Jan 12, 2024. ISSN 0120-159X.  https://doi.org/10.15446/rcs.v45n2/95919.

Due to its location and the existence of oil resources, Veracruz, in Mexico, has a strategic role in the territorial configuration. Since the end of the 20th century, it acquired a particular dynamic due to the spread of illegal activities that expanded the criminal economy, as oil theft and human trafficking. In addition, the presence of industrial and fishing ports facilitated the entry and exit of drugs, weapons, and people to Europe and the United States. In the last decade, in Veracruz there has been an increase in crime and disputes between different criminal groups to control the territory. This work intends to show that the behavior of criminal violence, expressed in homicides, is not spatially distributed in a random way, rather it is an expression of disputes over territory between criminal actors who seek the appropriation of drug trafficking routes and the control over strategic natural resources. Using Moran's index, with data related to local homicide rates between 2001 and 2018, this paper shows that patterns of spatial concentration of violence can be identified throughout Veracruz. Specifically, three large homicide agglomeration blocks were identified (South, Center, and North) as well as some sets of municipalities outside the blocks. To analyze the relationship between the concentration of homicides and disputes over territory between criminal organizations, a bibliographic and newspaper review was carried out on confrontations between criminal organizations in Veracruz in the same period. In these three blocks, evidence of clashes between criminal organizations were found as well as high homicide rates due to the presence of illegal drug and human trafficking routes, ports, and clandestine intakes of hydrocarbons. This work also identifies some limitations of Moran's index to explain other forms of violence in a territory.

Keywords : criminal violence; dispute over territory; illegal trafficking routes; Moran's index; organized crime.

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