On Tuesday, Transparency International released its annual Corruption Perceptions Index. The index rates countries from 0 to 100 (0 being the worst and 100 the best) and shows some very concerning trends. According to this article in The Guardian, the UK dropped from 71 to 70. The reason was increased campaign contributions from wealthy individuals, including an unnamed donor who gave £15 million to the Conservative Party in the last election cycle. The U.S also saw a dip in its score from 65 last year to 64 this year due to the current political climate. Across the board, except for a few examples, such as Ukraine, which has sought to strengthen its anti-corruption operations, there is a worrying lack of impetus to tackle global corruption. It is unclear in which direction anti-corruption efforts will go, but given that far-right populism appears to be going strong, the outlook is not promising.
Massive Corruption Scandal Hits South African Police Service.
Governmental and police corruption has long been a problem in South Africa. In recent months, a widespread investigation was launched into possible links between the South African police minister, Senzo Mchunu, and organized crime. According to a BBC report, the investigation, formally titled the Madlinga Commission, named after Judge Mbuyiseli Madlinga, has unearthed explosive testimony. The first major revelation was from the head of police intelligence, Dumisani Khumalo, who stated that there was a widespread cartel called the “ big five” that had its fingers in everything from drugs to contract killing. He also alleged that there were serving police officers who were prominent members of the cartel. In the most recent developments, another report in the BBC, a man named Wiandre Pretorious, who had been named in court documents, last week survived an attempt on his life, and reportedly shot himself at a gas station. This is very complex and developing, so it is unclear how it will end.
Police Corruption Probe Rocks Toronto.
(Disclaimer: This is the Crispin Corruption Report’s 200th blog post.)
Earlier this week, several Toronto police officers were arrested on several corruption-related charges. According to a report in the BBC, an investigation was triggered when an allegation emerged that police officers attempted to murder a prison officer at his house in May of last year. As the investigation proceeded, it came to light that several of the accused officers were also in the business of trafficking Cannabis and Fentanyl. At the center of the case was Constable Timothy Barnhardt, according to a report in the New York Times. Barnhardt allegedly obtained the prison officer’s address from the internal police database. He also illegally obtained the addresses of businesses that were later robbed or extorted by organized criminal elements in Toronto. This appears to be a wide-ranging scandal that isn’t going to end anytime soon.
Top Chinese General Sacked Over Corruption Allegations.
Yesterday, China’s most senior general, Zhang Youxia, was placed under investigation for “ suspected serious violations of discipline and law”. China’s military has fired many high-ranking generals over the years due to corruption. According to a report in The Guardian, Youxia allegedly leaked classified information about China’s nuclear program to intelligence sources in the U.S, as well as taking bribes. According to a Reuters report, Youxia’s ouster raises questions about a depleted military leadership in China at present. It is unclear what will happen next, but it is clear that Xi is not stopping his anti-corruption crusade anytime soon.
Mexican Security Chief Tangled in Complex Cartel Web.
(Note: The following events detailed in this article occurred last year, going to 2019. This is also a very complex story.)
Back in 2019, a gentleman named Trindad Alberto de la Cruz Miranda (otherwise known as El Pelon de Playas, translated as “the bald man of the beaches”) was arrested. At the time, he was the head of the notorious Los Zetas cartel in the state of Tabasco in Southeast Mexico. Immediately, the new secretary of security in Tabasco, Hernan Bermudez, was targeted by members of Los Zetas. According to a report in El País, Bermúdez was nominated to the post by Tabasco governor Adán Augusto López. Not long after Bermudez took over as Security chief, it emerged that he was the head of La Barredora, a regional branch of the New Generation cartel based in the state of Jalisco.
On December 4th, 2020, the criminal scene in Tabasco shifted dramatically when two gentlemen known by their aliases as Pantera (Panther) and Toro (Bull), who were involved in widespread stealing of fuel (a common criminal pursuit in Tabasco), executed someone who went by the Alias Kalimba, who had close ties to Los Zetas. Consequently, Pantera and Toro assumed Kalimba’s old fuel smuggling territory. Shortly after that, in 2021, the Mexican Ministry of Defense finally named Bermudez as the head of a massive criminal enterprise. As of September 2025, there was a report from the AP that Bermudez fled to Paraguay with the intention of setting up a criminal enterprise there. However, shortly after he arrived, he was arrested and extradited to Mexico to face charges of criminal association, extortion, and kidnapping. If you have to go to the police in Mexico, you have two problems.
Top Costa Rican Court Attempts to Strip President of Immunity.
(Disclaimer: This article is about events that occurred last summer.)
Back in July of last year, Costa Rica’s top court attempted to strip President Rodrigo Chaves of his presidential Immunity. According to a report in the AP, Chaves tried to induce a video producer who had won a contract awarded by the Central American Bank for Economic Integration to give $32,000 from that contract to former Chaves campaign advisor. According to a report by France 24, the culture minister, Jorge Rodriguez, may also be involved, and the attorney general has requested that his immunity be revoked as well. Chaves has accused the Costa Rican Supreme Court, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, and Congress of stifling the policy program. Subsequently, this became moot, as in September of last year, the congress, which needed a supermajority of 38 votes to revoke his immunity, received only 34.
Former President of Panama implicated in the Odebrecht Scandal.
On Monday, a Panamanian court opened criminal proceedings against the former president Ricardo Martinelli. According to a report by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), Martinelli is accused of accepting $59 million in bribes from the disgraced Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht. The Odebrecht scandal is far-reaching across Latin America, implicating hundreds of high-profile figures. In 2023, Martinelli requested asylum in Colombia after being found guilty of embezzling state funds to purchase shares in the media company Editora Panama America. According to a report in the Costa Rican newspaper, the Tico Times, another former Panamanian president, Juan Carlos Varela, is also accused of bribery and money laundering. If previous history is anything to go by, Martinelli could well be spending an extended stretch behind bars.
Court Sentences Seven in Healthcare Fraud Scandal.
On Monday, a judge in the Dominican Republic sentenced seven government officials to prison in a massive healthcare scandal. According to a report in the AP, Santiago Hazim Albainy, the executive director of the national health insurance agency, accepted $31 million in bribes. Albainy ran and took bribes from representatives of insurance companies in exchange for made-up contracts detailing services provided to people who turned out to be deceased. Three others were sentenced on Monday, including a prominent businessman and two private health insurance executives. These executives are to be held under house arrest for a year.
Documentary Film Exposes Judicial Corruption in Romania.
Last week, a documentary exposing judicial corruption in Romania sparked widespread protests. According to a report in Al Jazeera, these protests have been going on for five days. The documentary titled Captured Justice alleges that prosecutors pursuing anti-corruption efforts are thwarted by their superiors. Then those higher-ranking judges and civil servants embezzle millions of Leu (the Romanian currency) from government contracts. Romania is not the first European country to face anti-corruption protests; they have disrupted both Ukraine and Bulgaria. As with many of these situations, it is unclear what will happen next. Although it is encouraging to see the Romanian President, Nicusor Dan, acknowledging that change must occur.
A Daughter of Former President Zuma is involved in Russian Recruitment Scheme.
Last week, one of Former South African president Jacob Zuma’s daughters (Zuma has twenty children from six wives) was implicated in a scheme to recruit mercenaries for the Russian Army. According to a report in Al Jazeera, Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, a member of her father’s uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party since 2024, is alleged to have forced 17 South African men to enlist for military service with a Russian private military contractor (PMC). One of the more mind-boggling elements of this story is that, allegedly, eight of the seventeen men recruited were members of Zuma’s own family. Also, these claims emerged only after an affidavit was filed against her by her own half sister, Nkosazana Bonganini Zuma Mncube. Shortly after these claims, Zuma Sambudla resigned as an MP and was replaced by her half-sister, Brumelda Zuma. It is unclear what will happen next, but clearly, the political and family dynamics of the Zumas are quite complex.
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