Despite the government’s advances in security over the last decade, at least a half dozen major criminal groups still operate in Colombia. Several of them have put ideology aside and focus on drug production, trafficking and distribution on a local level, even while they continue to move arms, launder money, kidnap and extort. The complicated panorama has been fueled by the recent demobilization of thousands of right-wing paramilitaries and left-wing guerrillas. These ready recruits and experienced fighters have pushed levels of violence to their previous marks in some areas, particularly in urban settings where they seek to push more consumption. Mexican trafficking groups appear to be taking advantage of the chaos making the long-term prospects grim.