“The murders in San Borja are a wake-up call for everyone”: they fear that extortion on public transport will move to other areas | Crime | Crime | Citizen Security | Lime

This vile murder sets a precedent for the bus drivers on the Avenida da Arequipa route, who now also fear for their lives and believe that sooner or later the extortionists dedicated to collecting traffic quotas will come and threaten them. They are willing to dialogue and are willing to pay any price rather than not to be killed. ‘San Borja is a wake-up call for everyone’one of which indicates Ministry of Commerce.

Also read: An attack on transport occurs every 24 hours: gangs fight for control of buses

Crimes related to the collection of public transport quotas have been transferred to various districts of the capital. In this sense, those behind the wheel have declared that any attack on the axis of Arequipa Avenue, where they operate, will be considered an attack against them. This could happen in districts such as Lince, Jesús María, Miraflores, etc.

Key plot points

“We were all scared. “What could happen to us?”A source close to the El Mandarino transport company said that in July, a worker on the line was shot at close range at a bus station on Revolution Avenue in Comas. People in the area took the man to the Sergio Bernales Hospital to save his life. A witness to the case told Ministry of Commerce The victim was shot in the leg and hand

The extortionists continued to target the company, killing the driver, Lutman Berrios Pajuelo, last Tuesday night on the same street where the first armed attack took place.

Also read: Business of fear: How much do transporters, warehouse workers and the construction sector pay for quota collection?

“Today I killed a driver, tomorrow I will kill another driver, and if they continue to pay Monstruo Chonguito, I will kill another driver. From today they will no longer pay him. Art. “Those who will kill Monstruo Chonguito”, This was read on a piece of paper left on Rutman by the murderer.

The murder has raised alarm as the crime has led to more incidents throughout the city. Everything has been witnessed: shooting at buses full of passengers, a grenade at the last stop of the Etuchisa company in South Lima, the murder of another driver and more extortion threats.

Extortion through the collection of quotas from transporters is not new; in fact, it was one of the first mutations of this crime discovered in Peru in the early 2000s, when in the port of Callao, criminal organizations were struggling to control construction-related extortion, and in Trujillo in the north, criminal gangs began to collect fees from transporters. They put a sticker on each of them as a sign that they paid the fee. According to the source Ministry of CommerceThe situation in Changchun City has not changed.

Also read: Business of fear: How much do transporters, warehouse workers and the construction sector pay for quota collection?

Workers from companies such as El Mandarino, Etuchisa, Uvita, the Motorcycle Taxi Drivers Association and others are the first victims of criminals who demand payments in exchange for their work. According to information from the Public Ministry’s Statistics Portal, last year the Public Prosecutor’s Office received 22,396 complaints of extortion. This figure is five times higher than reported in 2021, when the figure was 4,761. As of July this year, complaints against this type of crime have reached 13,047, an increase of 907 from the total for 2022 (12,077).

César Anderson, president of the Peruvian Citizen Security Association (Aprosec), told El Comercio that people believe the current government is doing nothing about extortion. “I can tell you today that there are tens of thousands of people in our country who are being blackmailed. This is because crime is localized,” explain.

On the migration of crime to districts of the capital, experts said it was due to less police presence, deterrence and intelligence operations. “How can the police chief come out and say the media only reports these far-reaching crimes?”Aprosec President said.

Also read: An attack on transport occurs every 24 hours: gangs fight for control of buses

It is important to emphasize that after the murder of the El Mandarino driver, the Peruvian National Police (PNP) Commander Víctor Zanabria was questioned by the People’s Party of Peru on what his agency would do to stop the wave of violence that has affected the transport industry. The chief responded directly by saying that the state media contributes to criminal organizations by reporting on extortion cases that cause anxiety among the population, an issue that benefits criminals.

ATU and PNP meet

The problem was solved at a second working table meeting of representatives of the Urban Transport Administration (ATU) and the Criminal Investigation Department (Drincri) of Lima and Callao to intensify preventive actions in key locations of the capital and to launch investigations that led to the dismantling of criminal organizations that plague public transport.

In a meeting held at the Dirincri headquarters in Cercado de Lima on Saturday, police officers led by Criminal Investigations Director PNP Gen. Marco Conde Cuellar reported that special treatment will be given to transporters who wish to report incidents of extortion anonymously.

The criminal investigation chief urged transporters to trust their authorities and file relevant complaints to effectively fight crime. The ATU reported that the PNP will intensify training for transporters this week to facilitate complaints.

Likewise, given the seriousness of recent events, the ATU sent yesterday official letter No. D-000082-2024-PE to the Ministry of the Interior, requesting a proposal to the Executive to convene a “Conference of the Council of State”, the highest coordinating body of the Peruvian State. To achieve this goal, it seeks to unite the three powers of the State and autonomous organizations to stop these criminal acts and maintain the safety of the transport system for the benefit of the population.