Peruvian gang detained in Santa Cruz for residential robberies using fake licence plates
Eight Peruvian citizens were arrested in Santa Cruz after committing at least five robberies in homes in the northern part of the city. They operated using a vehicle with fake licence plates and rented a property via Airbnb.
Eight Peruvians arrested in Santa Cruz for residential robberies using fake-plated vehicle
Six men and two women of Peruvian nationality were arrested in Santa Cruz after being accused of perpetrating robberies in homes in the northern zone of the city, according to El Deber. At least five formal complaints presented by the affected property owners have been filed against them.
The investigation began when a group of neighbours went to the police with images from security cameras showing unknown individuals inside a white vehicle breaking into their homes. The complainants also provided the licence plate number visible in the recordings and the name of the registered vehicle owner.
Upon tracing that registration, local officers located a police officer as the vehicle's owner. The uniformed officer denied any connection with the gang and made the vehicle available to investigators. While the car remained in custody in the Los Tusequis area, police detected that another vehicle with similar characteristics and the same licence plate number was still circulating through the city, which confirmed the use of cloned plates.
The departmental police commander in Santa Cruz, colonel Edson Fernández, detailed that the first thread of the network was found at a supermarket, where two suspicious individuals ended up giving themselves away when questioned by officers. Based on their statements, police went to a property where another six people were located.
The director of the Special Force to Combat Crime (Felcc), colonel Abidón Espinoza, confirmed that all eight detainees are linked to the robberies reported by neighbours. In the group's possession, officers seized a firearm, tools for forcing open doors, the vehicle used in the operations and several counterfeit vehicle licence plates, including the registration number corresponding to the police officer's vehicle. This discovery led to ruling out the officer's participation in the criminal acts.
In the property that the foreigners rented through the Airbnb platform, jewellery, various household items and car parts were also found.
The eight detainees were identified as Leiner L.V., Brayan B.T., Flor D.C.P., Perla M.G.J., Renzo del C.R., Brandon K.R.F., Cristian F.S. and Jhonatan H.R.
"So far we have a total of five complaints against them, crimes that this gang committed in Santa Cruz," Espinoza stated.
Source: El Deber