This article examines how individuals navigate life in criminalized territories. Drawing on ethnographic research in Medellin, Colombia’s second-largest city, it explores the trajectories of three young men whose lives are deeply intertwined with the criminal elements controlling their neighborhood. Focusing on their ‘life stories’—the significant events and experiences influencing their paths—and their relationships with illegal actors, this anthropological work provides a nuanced understanding of how criminal organizations wield power and maintain governance. Complementing the prevailing approaches to what is generally referred to as ‘criminal governance’, which is often based on quantitative and second-hand data, it shows that this phenomenon is driven not only by rational and predatory dynamics, but also by intimacy and reciprocity. Building on these insights, it proposes the concept of criminal hegemony to understand, from a ground-up perspective, how criminal governance is continuously (re)shaped and negotiated.