Police stand guard in the neighborhood of Chorrillo, considered one of Panama City's most-crime-ridden neighborhoods. Crime rose in Panama by more than 20 percent between 2003 and 2008, a figure many say is directly linked to narco-trafficking. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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Paramedics rush a man stabbed by robbers at his store into the emergency unit of Santo Tomas Hospital. This hospital provides the only emergency service for Panama City residents without private health care. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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A driver, who stole this SUV at gunpoint crashed into the wall of a house during a police chase, and escaped by foot. Shocked onlookers commented about the increasing crime in their middle-class neighborhood of Riobaja. "Theft I don’t hear about. What I hear about is shooting between bands," said Silka Villareal, a Riobaja resident. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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Police on night patrol in Panama City search three young men who, moments earlier, appeared to be exchanging money and drugs. While drug shipments continue to flow via Panama en route to the north, "more drugs are arriving in the streets," said a law enforcement official at the U.S. Embassy. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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A teenager falls to the ground by a bullet in the back at about 1:30 a.m. in Panama City. Police believe he is yet another victim of intensifying gang wars over territory and drugs. “Now, the violence has increased because of narcotrafficking,” said Police Major Gustavo Cogley. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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Family and friends watch the evening go by in Chorrillo. While increasing violence has been linked to a burgeoning local drug trade, officials and residents point to other factors, such as poverty, unemployment and a lack of social and educational opportunities for youth. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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Too early on a weekend morning for much activity, this apartment building is home to the gang Baghdad, whose members wage wars with rival groups such as Vietnam 25, Children of the North and The 15 Floors, named after a high-rise home to the gang. “If last year there were 10 gangs in a neighborhood, now there are 15, 18,” said Police Major Raymond Varroso. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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Apartment buildings, like this one facing the cemetery in Chorillo, are increasingly under the dominion of local gangs. “If the new government doesn’t pay attention to it, gangs will change this country,” said Police Major Gustavo Cogley. Increased gang activity has been linked to growing numbers of homicides. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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Men play dominoes in the neighborhood of Chorrillo, where shootouts between rival gangs have become a regular occurrence and sometimes draw in innocent bystanders. Fiercely enforced territorial divisions mean that gang members and often their family members shouldn’t dare cross over into certain neighborhood blocks. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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A night time church service in Chorrillo. The church attracts many residents who are looking for a way out of lives plagued by drug addiction, domestic violence and crime. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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Five-year-old Yeny is fed at Juntos Podemos, an organization providing food and education to children in Curundu, one of the city’s poorest barrios. Children here are often faced with poverty, a lack of parental guidance and few social and educational opportunities. The Ministry of Education says the high school dropout rate has reached 70 percent. (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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The prospects for many children in Curundu are bleak. Adrian Montano, coordinator of Juntos Podemos, says he’s noticed an increase in local drug use across all ages. Police Major Cogley says the government, church, police and community organizations are starting to work together to tackle social factors that cause many youth to drift into crime. Above all, Cogley says youth need to be given opportunities: "This is what we have to do, but urgently.” (Nadja Drost/GlobalPost)
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