At ACME Sandiego was a success and rose through ACME's ranks faster than any agent in ACME history. There are three people known who were once her partner; Suhara, Jules Argent and Chase Devineaux. Argent was just a rookie when Sandiego became her partner. They solved many cases together and Argent came to respect Sandiego greatly. Argent still calls Carmen Sandiego "the best partner I ever had."

One of the last cases Carmen Sandiego and Chase Devineaux worked together was the case of the Prometheus Rock. The Rock was a meteor that was discovered by an ancient civilization, which tapped into its awesome powers. Its name seems to be a reference to Prometheus, the Titan patron of human civilization in Greek mythology. When it was stolen, Sandiego and Devineaux were dispatched to Athens, Greece. They were able to find the thieves responsible, but not able to locate the whereabouts of the rock.

Solving mysteries was getting too easy for Carmen, so she decided to give herself greater intellectual challenges by outsmarting ACME. Since Devineaux had been working so closely with her, she had to go undercover and he stopped working with ACME and started working on his own.

After leaving ACME, Carmen founded V.I.L.E. and since she has a soft spot for people who are less capable than herself, she stocked the ranks of her organization with some of the most incompetent villains in the world.

Once V.I.L.E. was founded it soon became common to hear that a world landmark had been stolen. Her thefts wern't limited to the Earth, either. She has been know to steal things from outer space, such as Saturn's rings. However, Carmen wanted more. So she broke in ACME headquarter and stole the Cronoskimmer, the only time travel devise on the planet. The name Cronoskimmer comes from the Greek word Chronos, which means time and in Greek mythology is also the name of its personification.

She dropped villains off at different time periods so they could steal something from the past as part of "Project History Sweep." Carmen's ultimate plan of "Project History Sweep" was to steal her own dossier from ACME headquarters, believing she would be able to erase her "embarrassing" ACME history.

Carmen failed, but she wasn't finished with time travel, she stole a Russian project that involved time travel and built her own time machine. Though agents Zack and Ivy managed to thwart her plans to change the history of colonial America, she eventually set up a facility where she could send one of her villains back in time, with the push of button.

To counteract this, ACME built a giant Cronoskimmer, and sent the squadron leader as well as three time pilots back in time to stop Carmen's plans.

Another plan of Carmen's was to steal language. She would do this with new invention called the Bable-On Machine which was stored in the Tower of Bable. Its name is a pun on that of the legendary Tower of Babel. "Bable-On" is a play on Babylon, Iraq which is usually identified with Babel. Chase Devineaux came out of his undercover job to help ACME on this case, but Carmen managed to capture all but one of ACME's 13 agents. Agent 13 somehow practically single-handedly stopped her and destoyed the Bable-On Machine.

She built a new machine, the Quantum Crystalizer, which could shrink anything into tiny crystals. Agent 13, apparently promoted to Agent 9, helpped Devineaux on this case as well, to recover 12 stolen landmarks. It was soon discovered, with further investigation, that the Prometheus Rock was being used to power the machine, the same which had disappeared all those years before. A "Power Drain" began sucking all the electrical power from the world, and even ACME shut down. Somehow Agent 9 and Chase Devineaux managed to destroy the machine.

Carmen latter decided that since "knowledge is power" she would steal knowledge. To accomplish this task she built Knowledge Robots or KnowBots to steal knowledge. ACME sent groups of agents out to fight these KnowBots, and try to get passwords to break to their hide-outs.

Carmen Sandiego was once an agent of the ACME Detective Agency, until she quit to pursue greater intellectual challenges. Lynne Thigpen played the Chief of ACME on the PBS Carmen Sandiego series and some of the computer products. ACME headquarters is located in San Francisco.

In the computer games, the user is always an agent of ACME, and is promoted thoughout the game.

ACME agents include:

• The Chief - The Chief differs from program to program. The most notably is the live action Chief depicted by Lynne Thigpen. Another Chief, featured in Where on Earth is Carmen Sanidego? and in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition is a computerized image. There are others, such as the Chief featured in Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego: Treasures of Knowledge, but most only appear once.

• Chase Devineaux - When Carmen was at ACME, Chase Devineaux (pronunced dev-in-no) was her partner. When she left ACME, Devineaux had to go undercover and started working separatly from ACME. He started working with ACME again on the Bable-On Case and has since become an ACME Special Agent. Devineaux was featured in Carmen Sandiego Word Detective, Carmen Sandiego Math Detective and Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge.

• Ivy - Ivy (age 18) has multiple black belts in the martial arts. She's an expert pilot and has razor sharp crime tracking skills. She's more driven than her brother Zack is, and gets frustrated easily. Ivy's last name is unknown. Ivy was featured in Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? and in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition

• Zack - Zack (age 14) has a photographic memory and can speak twenty languages. He is a kid genius who knows millions of facts. He manages to be a cool, floppy haired, baggy clothed, skate boarding teen, and takes cases less seriously than his sister Ivy. Zack's last name is unknown. Zack was featured in Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? and in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition

• Stretch the Crime Dog - As a pup, Stretch nabbed so many V.I.L.E. villains, that ACME awarded him it's highest K-9 honor: "The Golden Snout Award." Stretch should be kept away from Carmine the cat, or they fight, quite literally, like cats and dogs. Stretch was featured in Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? and in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition

• Penelope Paparazzi - Penelope Paparazzi’s motto is "Ladies first," and her career as a photographer for the ACME Detective Agency, proves it. This elegant camera expert has risen to the top, despite the spills and frills that follow her on every assignment. Her last name is a pan on the term Paparazzi used for certain journalists and photographers. Her namesake Penelope is a figure of the Odyssey, attributed to Homer. Her first name was more likely chosen, simply because it started with the same letter as her last name. Penelope was featured in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition.

• Candid Cammie - Candid Cammie is a photographer for the ACME Detective Agency. She would be a great photographer...if she ever opened her eyes. Her name is a pun on that of the television series Candid Camera. Candid was featured in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition.

• Olympia Vu-Finder - Olympia Vu-Finder is a photographer for the ACME detective agency, who’s mother was an athlete and father was a great photographer. Unfortunately, Olympia does both at the same time. Her first name is probably a reference to the Olympus company which manufactures photographic equipment. Olympia was featured in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition.

• Flash Dweebly - Flash Dweeby is the nerdiest photographer for the ACME detective agency. Flash was featured in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition.

• "No Focus" Norman - A former spy and now a photographer for ACME, Norman carries a whole wardrobe of hat-cameras, shoe-cameras and phone-cameras. It’s said that if he ever learns to use a camera correctly, all of V.I.L.E. will be packed off to jail. Norman was featured in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition.

• Calvin the Caped Camera Kid - Calvin is a photographer for the ACME Detective Agency. Apparently, he thinks of himself as some kind of superhero, as he flies down on a cape with a rope tied around his waist and take the culprit's picture. What the other end of the rope is attached to is anyone’s guess. Calvin was featured in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition.

• F-Stop Freddy - ACME loves Freddy, as a robot photographer doesn’t need a vacation, paycheck or anything else normal employees need. However, their compared expenses are matched due to all the bills from the robot mechanic shop. Freddy was featured in Carmen Sandiego: Junior Detective Edition.

• Jules Argent - Jules was once Carmen Sandiego's partner. She considers Carmen the best agent ACME ever had. Jules is experienced with Carmen's methods and is full of facts. Jules keeps a journal to keep track of clues. Jules was featured in Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego: Treasures of Knowledge

• Shadow Hawkins - Hawkins was so arrogant when he started his first assignment, that he thought he could, "catch that ACME traitor and be home in time for dinner." As the case went on though, it became clear, even to him, that Carmen wasn't easy to catch. Hawkins seems to believe gadgets are the answer to everything. Hawkins was featured in Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego: Treasures of Knowledge

• Ivan Idea - Ivan Idea an ACME Good Guide and a teenage genius invented the ACME Bable-Link Translator, ACME Get-Clue Case Pad and the ACME Cronoskimmer. Ivan's hobby is conducting investigations of the Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Wall of China and other past feats of engineering. Ivan likes to study the great inventors of the past. "Ivan Idea" is a pun that sounds like "I have an idea."

• Herman Nootix - Herman is an ACME Good Guide and his nose can usually be found in a stack of books. Herman is a serious and hard working scholar. "Herman Nootix" is a play on "hermeneutics."

• Dee Plomassy - Dee Plomassy is an ACME Good Guide. Dee's career as a diplomat started in childhood, when she convinced a classmate who stole third base to return it. Dee can speak 17 languages fluently and is frequently called upon by world leaders, impressing people with her grace, her elegance and her very tall turban. "Dee Plomassy" is a play on "diplomacy."

• Renee Santz - Renee, an ACME Good Guide, has been interested in Art since birth, as her father is renowned bassist Red Cheeks, and her mother is the famous architect Fallen Arches. Renee is the head of the ACME orchestra, and her works of painting and sculpture can be found in museums through out the world. "Renee Santz" is a play on "renaissance."

• Rock Solid - A geologist, forester, and an ACME Good Guide, Rock may be as big and tough as a rocky mountain bolder, but has a soft hart when it comes to the well being of animals. He is fearless when it comes to exploring realms of the unknown. "Rock Solid" is a play on "rock solid."

• Ann Tickwittee - Ann, an ACME Good Guide, has been interested in archaeology, since she read about the lost city of Troy, and wondered how was it possible to lose an entire city. She graduated from the ACME Institute of Carmenology (ACME's school of Goood Guides) with a degree in "Ancient Cities and Other Dusty Stuff." Ann guards the world's treasures, because she wants to be sure that "the past is always present." "Ann Tickwittee" is a play on "antiquity."

• Polly Tix - Polly Tix is the youngest ACME Good Guide, and is a wiz when it comes to politics. Her high school voted her, "Most Likely to Run a Country...Any Country!" Polly is still to young to vote. "Polly Tix" is a play on "politics."

• Kim Yoonity - Kim is a firm believer in the world being just one, big, global village. Kim is one of the most well connected people on the planet Earth, and has the telephone bill to prove it. Kim is also an ACME Good Guide. "Kim Yoonnity" is a play on "community."

V.I.L.E.

V.I.L.E. is clearly a very large organization. Well over 150 members of V.I.L.E. have been recorded. V.I.L.E. also has bases around the world (see V.I.L.E. Hideouts) and operates entirely underground due to its sinister intentions.

V.I.L.E villians include:

V.I.L.E. hideouts

• Abner Cadabr's Magic Shop, Kolkata (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• A. Leon Being's Space Station, in orbit around Jupiter (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• Ann Fibian's Sunken Ship, Bermuda Triangle (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• Blona Fuse's Robot Factory, Filchner Ice Shelf (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• C. D. Romm's House, Seattle, Washington (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• Count Hypno's Hideout (Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge)
• Dinah Saur's Natural History Museum, London (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• Doug Grave's Cemetery, Hungary (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Dr. Depth's Mine, Andamooka (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective, Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge)
• Dr. D. Ranged's Laboratory, Moldova (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Dr. Ima LeZaarde's Space Lab, Peru (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective, Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge)
• Electra Vector's Cave, Under the Hoover Dam (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Esther Odious' Estate, Monaco (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Estancia Mandoza's Ranch, Argentina (Treasure of Knowledge)
• Ferda Lyzer's Lab, Amazon Rainforest (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• I. I. Captain's Ship, Indian Ocean (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Ill Will's Playhouse, London (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Jane Reaction's Chemical Lab (Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge)
• Mel Ancholy's Music Hall, Vienna (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Nick Furtive's Detective Office, Chicago (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Otto Readmore's Library, New York State (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective, Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge)
• Power Plex, V.I.L.E. Central, Washington, DC (Where in the USA is Carmen Sandiego?, Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• Queen Notalotenkammen's Crypt, Egypt (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Rig Atony's Amusement Park, Barcelona (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• Roger Overnout's Hanger, Sahara Desert (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• Snarla Swing's Temple (Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge)
• Snarla Swing's Treehouse, Tanzania (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Teri Yaki's Flat, Tokyo (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)
• Tower of Babel, Iraq (Carmen Sandiego Word Detective)
• Velma N. Ventress's Cave, Samoa (Carmen Sandiego Math Detective)