Criminal convergence in the amazon: an analysis of drug trafficking and illegal mining

This article examines how drug trafficking and illegal gold mining converge in the Amazon and proposes an analytical framework to systematize the phenomenon of criminal convergence. Although investigative reports and institutional diagnoses increasingly describe interactions between illegal mining and drug trafficking in the Amazon, these dynamics remain insufficiently systematized in the academic literature. Drawing on General Systems Theory and ecosystemic approaches to organized crime, the article asks which variables help explain the convergence between illicit markets, criminal actors, and territories. The study also identifies Violent Non-State Actors (VNSAs) simultaneously involved in illegal mining and drug trafficking networks across the Amazon. Methodologically, the study combines a systematic literature review on criminal convergence with content analysis of investigative reports and institutional documents concerning illegal mining and organized crime in the Amazon. The framework is applied to examine how criminal activities, actors, and territories interact within the Amazonian context. The findings suggest that illegal gold mining and drug trafficking operate within the same criminal ecosystem, characterized by shared logistics, territorial control, illicit financial flows, and operational cooperation. The analysis also demonstrates that the convergence surrounding illegal mining extends beyond drug trafficking, incorporating activities such as extortion, arms trafficking, money laundering, violent territorial control, and human trafficking. Rather than representing a simple overlap of illicit markets, the article argues that “narco-mining” functions as a system of criminal convergence. By systematizing the variables that organize these interactions, the article contributes to the study of criminal ecosystems and organized crime in the Amazon.