Five detained over jewellery store robbery in Santa Cruz; weapons and jewels found in Warnes
Police arrested at least five suspects in operations in Warnes, three days after a violent robbery at a jewellery store in Santa Cruz de la Sierra.
Operations in Warnes yield five arrests over third ring jewellery store robbery
Three days after an armed robbery at a jewellery store located at the intersection of the third ring and Busch Avenue in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, police reported the arrest of at least five suspects in operations carried out in the town of Warnes, according to El Deber. During the operations, a vehicle, firearms, jewels and clothing were seized and will be sent for examination to determine their connection to the robbery.
Agents from the Criminal Analysis and Intelligence Department (DACI) and the Special Force to Combat Crime (Felcc) raided properties in the Satélite Norte and Integración del Norte neighbourhoods. On one of the avenues in Satélite Norte, officers intercepted a white vehicle and subdued its occupants. Residents filmed the procedure, which drew attention due to the scale of the police deployment.
In another raided house, investigators found clothing with characteristics similar to that worn by the robbers, according to preliminary reports. The property was sealed to preserve evidence. In the same operation, jewels, firearms and a motorcycle were found. Authorities must establish whether the recovered items came from the robbed business and whether the weapons were used during the crime.
Reports issued during the day indicate at least five people arrested, although government sources initially confirmed only three, including a foreign citizen. By the time El Deber went to press, no official list of those detained had been published nor had the degree of participation attributed to each person been specified. Final reports were to be presented by police the following day.
The robbery occurred around 19:00 on Sunday, 11 October. Armed men burst into a jewellery store in a shopping centre, detained and intimidated four people, fired shots and smashed display cases to steal valuable pieces, then fled as security cameras recorded part of the incursion. The incident triggered an unprecedented military deployment in the city.
"We are working to clarify this criminal act, to determine the participation of each of the suspected perpetrators," said departmental prosecutor Mabel Andrade. The total value of the jewels stolen has not yet been calculated.
The case also involves a shop employee, captured by cameras placing jewels into bags belonging to the robbers. The woman was taken to a bail hearing and received house arrest. The prosecution is investigating whether there was prior coordination with those who carried out the robbery.
President Rodrigo Paz commented on the episode, describing it as "an act of criminal violence of an international nature" and warned of the presence of transnational criminal organisations in the country, also mentioning death threats received following the arrest of a member of Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC).
Interim Attorney General José Armando Urioste raised the possibility that the PCC was linked to the robbery. "I believe organised crime has run out of cash," he stated, in reference to the impact of the investigation against former prosecutor Róger Mariaca, detained in the Potosí prison of Cantumarca accused of protecting drug trafficking.
Source: El Deber