1. NS4540 Winter Term 2017 Gangs of El Salvador
Oxford Analytica, Central America: Trump may trigger trade opportunities, January 5, 2017

2. Overview
For a long time conventional view of El Salvadoran gangs was that they followed the 3G2 gang model
Violent networks in a context of
A state constrained by minimal capacity
Poor economic performance and
Significant social, political and economic disparities
3G2 model argues gangs grow increasingly sophisticated with time and success – Darwinian mechanism
Stage one – local community protection supported by petty crime
Stage two – criminal businesses, de-facto control of geographic areas
Stage three – international connections and penetration of governments

3. MS-13 Finances I
Recent NYT article “Killers on a Shoestring: Inside the Gangs of El Salvador” cast doubt on this model
In the current situation
Estimated 60,000 members in country of 6.5 million
Maintain menacing presence in 247 of countries 262 municipalities
Extort about 70% of businesses
Dislodge entire communities from homes and help propel thousands of Salvadorans to undertake dangerous journey to the US
Their violence costs El Salvador $4 billion a year
Yet closer look does not place them in same category of billion dollar Mexican, Japanese, and Russian syndicates

4. MS-13 Finances II
Recent wiretaps revealed MS-13 collected $600,852 in a typical week
With 40,000 members each gang member earns about $65 a month – half minimum wage of an agricultural worker
However gangs have expenses
Lawyers and funeral services
Weapons and munitions and
Support for those serving long prison terms and their families
Leaves very little for typical member
Still they hold considerable power over businesses and can be a significant detriment to investment