Violations of the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act can carry federal prison sentences ranging from 10 years to life imprisonment.
November 17, 2025
high
legal
Penalties associated with the U.S. Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act for significant maritime drug-trafficking offenses.
Maritime drug-smuggling operations can involve coordinating with a ship's crew to conceal cocaine in shipping containers and transferring the drugs from speedboats to commercial cargo vessels.
November 17, 2025
high
method
Describes commonly reported tactics used in large-scale maritime cocaine trafficking.
Offering money to a juror to influence a verdict constitutes jury tampering, can result in criminal charges, and can lead a court to dismiss the jury and take remedial steps such as selecting an anonymous jury.
November 17, 2025
high
procedural
General legal consequences and judicial remedies associated with attempts to bribe or corrupt jurors in criminal trials.
As of 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice reported that violent crime in Washington, D.C., was at a 30-year low.
November 10, 2025
high
statistical
Reported characterization of Washington, D.C. violent crime levels by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Federal criminal statutes include offenses such as wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, and conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery, and prosecutors may seek penalties of up to 20 years in prison on top charges.
November 09, 2025
high
legal
Describes categories of federal charges and the potential maximum penalties referenced in reporting of betting-related prosecutions.
The United Nations estimates that scam networks based in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and the Philippines extract tens of billions of dollars annually from victims worldwide through schemes that include fake investment scams and romance-based scams.
November 05, 2025
high
temporal
U.N. estimate describing annual global revenue and common scam types associated with Southeast Asian-based scam networks
Tren de Aragua is a criminal gang that originated in a Venezuelan prison.
October 24, 2025
high
background
Provides origin information about the Tren de Aragua criminal organization.
Criminal statutes and prosecutions can include drug-facilitated sexual-assault offenses that charge forcible rape, sodomy, or sexual penetration when the perpetrator uses controlled substances or anesthesia to incapacitate a victim.
October 16, 2025
high
legal
Describes categories of offenses commonly charged in cases where drugs or anesthesia are used to incapacitate sexual-assault victims.
As of 2025-10-12, 35 people had been executed in the United States during 2025.
October 12, 2025
high
temporal
Cumulative count of federal and state executions reported during the 2025 calendar year up to the given date.
The Gun Violence Archive defines a mass shooting as any incident in which more than four people are shot, not including the shooter.
October 11, 2025
high
definition
Operational definition used by the Gun Violence Archive for counting mass shootings.
International criminal organizations have exploited online vulnerabilities in global supply chains to steal high-value goods, producing losses on the order of hundreds of millions of dollars.
October 05, 2025
high
general
Describes a broad pattern of supply-chain-targeted theft enabled by online/informational vulnerabilities.
Statistics compiled by the Major Cities Chiefs Association across 67 law enforcement agencies showed an overall decline in homicides of 19% in the first nine months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024.
September 30, 2025
high
temporal
Aggregate homicide change across major U.S. law enforcement agencies.
Buffalo, New York; Denver, Colorado; Orlando, Florida; and Seattle, Washington each experienced declines in homicides exceeding 40% during the first nine months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, according to Major Cities Chiefs Association data.
September 30, 2025
high
temporal
City-level homicide percentage changes for the first nine months of 2025 versus 2024.
Portland, Oregon reported a 39% decrease in homicides during the first nine months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, according to Major Cities Chiefs Association data.
September 30, 2025
high
temporal
City-level homicide change for Portland in early 2025 versus early 2024.
Atlanta, Georgia experienced a 19.4% increase in overall violent crime during the first nine months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, driven by increases in robberies and assaults.
September 30, 2025
high
temporal
City-level change in violent crime for Atlanta in early 2025 versus early 2024.
Boston experienced a 143% increase in homicides in the first half of 2025.
June 30, 2025
medium
temporal
Reported statistic describing a change in homicide incidence in Boston over the first half of 2025.
In 2024, reported hate crime incidents in the United States decreased by 1.5% from 2023.
January 01, 2024
high
temporal
Statistical details about hate crimes reported by law enforcement.
Memphis, Tennessee, frequently ranks among U.S. cities with the highest violent crime rates and recorded 40.6 homicides per 100,000 people in 2024.
January 01, 2024
high
temporal
City-level homicide rate and general ranking for violent crime in the United States.
There were 689 mass shootings in the United States in 2022, the highest annual total recorded by the Gun Violence Archive since it began tracking gun violence in 2013.
December 31, 2022
high
temporal
Annual total of incidents classified as mass shootings according to Gun Violence Archive's historical records.
Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted on sex trafficking and related charges in 2021.
December 29, 2021
high
temporal
Conviction of Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell on charges related to sex trafficking.
The Minnesota Freedom Fund is a nonprofit bail fund that raised more than $41 million during the 2020 Minneapolis protests to support demonstrators arrested during clashes with police.
January 01, 2020
high
temporal
Describes the organization and the scale of funds raised during the 2020 Minneapolis protests.
A FOX 9 investigation of the Minnesota Freedom Fund's 2020 funds found that the group spent most of the money bailing defendants accused of serious violent crimes rather than low-level protest offenses.
January 01, 2020
high
temporal
Summarizes the core finding of the reported investigation into how the 2020 funds were spent.
Jeffrey Epstein died in prison in 2019 and his death was ruled a suicide.
August 10, 2019
high
temporal
Outcome of Jeffrey Epstein's incarceration.
Jeffrey Epstein died by suicide in federal custody in 2019.
August 10, 2019
high
temporal
Death of financier Jeffrey Epstein while detained on federal charges.
The previous record for executions in a single year in the state of Florida was eight executions in 2014.
January 01, 2014
high
temporal
State-level annual execution total serving as Florida's prior single-year high.
The Associated Press/USA TODAY/Northeastern University Mass Killing Database tracks all homicides in the United States since 2006 in which four or more people were intentionally killed within a 24-hour period, excluding any offender.
January 01, 2006
high
definition
Definition and inclusion criteria for the mass-killing database compiled by AP/USA TODAY/Northeastern University.
A 1993 forensic comparison in the investigation showed significant similarities between William Schrader's hair sample and hair found clutched in the hand of 9-year-old Carol Ann Dougherty.
January 01, 1993
high
forensic
Result from a forensic hair comparison cited in a grand jury review of a decades-old homicide investigation.
El Sayyid Nosair assassinated Rabbi Meir Kahane in 1990.
January 01, 1990
high
temporal
Historic criminal act referenced in background on related legal defenses.
La Cosa Nostra's presence in the United States dates back to the 1920s.
January 01, 1920
high
temporal
Historical timeframe for the establishment and prevalence of La Cosa Nostra in the U.S.
Security experts assess that tourists in Egypt are more likely to encounter scams, harassment, and petty theft (including pickpocketing in crowded markets, taxi overcharging and aggressive sales tactics) than violent crimes such as armed robbery or assault.
high
general
General risk profile for tourists based on expert assessments of common criminal behavior encountered by visitors.
Jeffrey Epstein was a convicted child sex trafficker.
high
descriptive
Characterization of Jeffrey Epstein's criminal activity.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security stated that Mexican gangs have offered bounties of up to $50,000 for the assassination of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in the United States.
high
general
DHS reporting on threats and bounties directed at immigration enforcement personnel
Under U.S. federal law, transmitting a communication in interstate or foreign commerce that contains a threat can carry a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison.
high
legal
Criminal penalty associated with transmitting threats across interstate or foreign commerce
Some alleged poker cheating schemes have used well-known former professional athletes as 'face cards' who received a portion of proceeds from cheating teams.
high
crime-pattern
Describes a recurring tactic reported in organized cheating schemes at high-stakes poker games
Cheating in high-stakes poker has involved rigged shuffling machines secretly altered to read cards, enabling organizers to defraud players.
high
method
Technical method used to manipulate outcomes in poker games
La Cosa Nostra (LCN) in the United States evolved from the Sicilian Mafia and is organized as a New York-based network of five families: Bonanno, Colombo, Gambino, Genovese, and Lucchese.
high
descriptive
Organizational definition and composition of La Cosa Nostra within the U.S.
La Cosa Nostra and similar organized-crime families have historically been associated with illegal gambling operations and sports-related corruption such as match-fixing and rigging.
medium
descriptive
Types of criminal activities historically linked to organized-crime families in the U.S.
Publicly posting offers of reward for killing or otherwise soliciting violence on social media can prompt criminal investigations and potential charges.
high
criminal
Expressions on online platforms that solicit or threaten violence may be investigated and prosecuted under applicable state or federal laws.
Some high-stakes poker cheating schemes have used technologies such as X-ray tables, rigged card-shuffling machines, hidden cameras, and specialized glasses to detect marked cards.
medium
general
Describes methods that have been employed in organized cheating operations targeting high-stakes poker games.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act is a statute under which individuals can be charged with conspiracy to violate racketeering laws.
high
legal
RICO is used in U.S. prosecutions to address organized criminal activity and related conspiracies.
VICAR is an acronym for 'violent crimes in aid of racketeering' and refers to violent offenses committed to further racketeering activities.
high
definition
VICAR is a legal designation used in federal prosecutions of violence tied to racketeering enterprises.
MS-13 and the 18th Street gang are rival criminal gangs.
high
organizational
The two groups are known to have violent rivalries in multiple U.S. jurisdictions.
Illegal sports betting operations can use offshore gambling websites to facilitate or conceal wagering activity.
medium
behavioral
Method commonly associated with unlawful gambling enterprises to evade local regulations or oversight.
The Cartel de los Soles is a criminal network based in Venezuela that has been described in public reporting as linked to personnel within Venezuelan military or government institutions and implicated in transnational drug trafficking.
medium
organizational
Characterization of the organization as described in multiple public accounts and governmental statements.
Robbery attempts targeting tourists' vehicles and valuables have in some cases escalated into fatal shootings.
high
temporal
Criminal behavior pattern where thefts of tourists' property can lead to lethal violence.
School kidnappings have become a defining aspect of insecurity in Nigeria, with armed gangs often treating schools as strategic targets to attract attention.
high
descriptive
General pattern of targeting schools within broader insecurity in Nigeria.