With 56.08 homicides per 100,000 residents, this city is considered one of the world’s most violent. It has 640,188 residents, and in 2012 had 359 homicides. A cartel boss was killed in 2009, setting off vengeful violence ever since.
Well, can’t say there’s American pride in a city making the list, but it’s only one of five U.S. cities in a list of 50. This popular, culturally vibrant and outrageously fun city of Louisiana is on the list for crime every year. Crime is most common amongst poor men living in lower-income areas. Although the crime rate has dropped since the ’90s, it still has 56.13 murders for every 100,000 people.
Here is the trend you will find: Brazil has the greatest number of most dangerous cities on this list. Smaller-sized seaports such as Vitoria in Brazil have been the epicenter for street violence, drug smuggling, and worse. In 2012, a one-year-old girl was brutally murdered during a robbery. Vitoria has 60.40 homicides for 100,000 residents. There were 1,018 deaths per 1,685,384 inhabitants.
Not that large of a city, it still holds a disquieting ratio of murders. In 2012, 549 out of 884,601 people were lost to homicide. Culiacán is the operating headquarters for the Sinaloa Cartel, a dangerous gang that basically runs the city through its cocaine smuggling network. The Mexican military has intervened, although it only led to drug dealers arming themselves with heavier firearms.
14. Salvador, Brazil
With a yearly carnival, this thriving waterfront metropolis attracts many tourists seeking a sensational festival experience every year. But it had 65.64 murders per 100,000 people, with 2,391 homicides for 3,642,482 citizens in 2012. The capital of the northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia sees an unfortunate amount of car hijackings, armed robbery and murder every year.
Brazil’s most densely populated area is also its fifth-largest city. Crime has found a home here with 66.30 homicides per 100,000 residents. In 2012, its 3,529,138 residents experienced a murder rate of 1,154 citizens. This city is notorious for broad-daylight robberies coupled with an incompetent police force.
Another rough Latin American city is the capital of Guatemala which endures 67.36 homicides for every 100,000 residents. In 2012 it reported 4,000 murders. Death by gunfire is the main cause, according to the National Institute of Forensic Science. It’s a sad situation here. The military fights the crime while also oppressing its own citizens, but the country feels the need for its presence on account of the large drug flow from South America.
With 70.37 homicides per 100,000 residents, this city of 2.5 million resides near the two rivers which converge to make the mighty Amazon. Linked by boat to Colombia, the drug trade is growing out of control, especially in the crime-ridden favellas. Shootouts between federal forces and cartels are prevalent, and high-level narcotics prosecutors and judges require 24-hour protection (above). In 2012, 1,079 people were murdered in Manaus.
10. João Pessoa, Brazil
This beach town in north eastern Brazil has miles of idyllic waterfront, but the massive inequality leads to extremely high crime rates in the slum areas. In 2012, João Pessoa reported a murder rate of 71.59, many of which were against women — Brazilian women are given a lower status in neighboring countries, resulting in high numbers of crimes against them. The crime rate has risen nearly ten-fold for the past few years, making it seem as though the situation will get even worse before it gets better.
9. Barquisimeto, Venezuela
Venezuela has a long history of violence, and Barquisimeto is no exception. While it also experienced a crime rate of 71.74, it made news again in January 2013 due to a deadly prison riot. 61 inmates were killed and dozens more injured, and relatives of those killed vowed retaliation against local police. Murders have spiked already for 2013, leaving it nearly certain that Barquisimeto will make the list again this year.
8. Nuevo Laredo, Mexico
Nuevo Laredo’s location on a major drug trafficking route right on the border with Texas leads to its high murder rates each year — 72.85. Turf wars are common as cartels fight over the territory for control, and the sounds of gunfire are common for residents to hear while in their homes. Vigilantes have begun acting to try to curb the violence, tracking down the smugglers and gang leaders.
7. Cali, Colombia
Since the powerful Cali cartel, a leader of the international cocaine trade, was broken up in 1992, smaller cartels have risen up in its absence. These established cartels provide funding to over 130 known youth gangs, who are then used for cheap labor and drug running. Violence is further escalated by law enforcement, who often use unnecessary force and rack up civilian casualties as collateral damage. The murder rate in Cali is 79.27.
6. Maceió, Brazil
Also in north eastern Brazil, fairly close to João Pessoa, lies Maceió, which held a 85.88 murder rate in 2012. Its economy is largely agricultural, but high rates of poverty and the resulting inequality, as well as a prevalent drug culture, lead to large amounts of violence. Rather than address the rampant crime in the slums, politicians have designated more resources to wealthier neighborhoods to promote tourism and protect the rich.
5. Torreón, Mexico
Torreón’s 94.72 murder rate is a result of its unfortunate location as the center of a turf war between the Sinaloa Cartel and the Loz Zetas drug gang, who came into the area in 2007 and have been driving violence ever since. Kidnappings and beheading are common for law enforcement to deal with, and the Zetas are even rumored to effectively control some of the prisons in Torreón. It has gotten to the point where police negotiate with the Sinaloa Cartel in order to deal with the ruthless Zetas.
4. Distrito Central, Honduras
With a murder rate of 101.99, the Distrito Central in Honduras is entirely governed by gangs as soon as you leave the business district. Residents live in constant fear of local gangs such as the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) or Barrio 18, who often impose taxes or curfews against those who live in their territories. Gang members have been known to target policemen to increase their status, and law enforcement has an understandably difficult time cracking down on the rampant crime in the municipality.
3. Caracas, Venezuela
Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, is also its capital center of crime, as the city saw a murder rate of 118.89 in 2012. With over 3 million residents, police have a difficult time curbing the crime, especially as criminals notoriously target law enforcement officials who come after them (in 2012 alone, there were 101 police homicides!). Furthermore, the stark income divide in Caracas makes the situation even more tenuous, as the hundreds of thousands living in abject poverty live side-by-side with the wealthy families who control the country’s business sector.
2. Acapulco, Mexico
Like many of the other cities on this list, the drug cartels in Acapulco have caused murder rates to spike in recent years, leaving it at 142.88 in 2012. Tourism, formerly the lifeblood of the city, has diminished almost completely, as beach-goers are driven elsewhere by rampant crime. The prominent Beltran Leyva Cartel was broken up years ago, causing smaller gangs and cartels to come in and violently clash to try to control the territory, a prime drug smuggling route. In the vicious cycle of crime, jobs have become scarce as the tourism industry has disappeared, forcing more youth into lives of gang violence and drug running.
1. San Pedro Sula, Honduras
Ranked the #1 most dangerous city for the second year in a row, San Pedro Sula in Honduras reported a 169.3 murder rate for 2012. Since a coup in 2009, the Honduran government has been unable to control the country, and crime has run rampant. A cocaine hub with rivalling cartels, murder has become so out of control that tourism grounded to a halt and many countries are considering instituting travel bans to protect their citizens, as foreigners are prime targets in San Pedro Sula – the Peace Corps even pulled out its members in 2012 due to the inability to ensure their safety. While the numbers are astronomically high, it is widely assumed that the actual murder rate is even higher, as authorities loathe to report the true extent of crime.
