Governor Velasco demands more police and military patrols in Santa Cruz
Governor Juan Pablo Velasco hardened his stance against the advance of organised crime in Santa Cruz and activated Plan Z following a jewellery store robbery.
Velasco warns of organised crime and calls for police and military reinforcements in Santa Cruz
The governor of Santa Cruz, Juan Pablo Velasco, appeared at the jewellery shop victim of a robbery and demanded more police officers, joint patrols with the Armed Forces, and greater migration control, according to reduno.com.bo.
"Organised crime is taking over the peace of those from Santa Cruz and we will not allow it," Velasco declared before the media present at the scene.
Following the assault, the authority indicated that he made contact with the Departmental Police Command, the General Command of the Bolivian Police, and the commander of the Eighth Division of the Army to coordinate a joint response. "All law enforcement forces can carry out constant patrols, because clearly the police forces we have today are not meeting the needs we have as a department," he stated.
The Departmental Police activated Plan Z to intensify the search for those responsible for the robbery. "We will certainly be looking at this all night," affirmed the governor, who noted that the immediate priority is to verify that there are no additional victims and to capture those responsible.
Velasco mentioned in particular San Ignacio de Velasco and San Matías as especially vulnerable areas, where in recent months violent acts linked to crime have been recorded. "We experience robberies, we experience murders, we cannot continue like this," he emphasised.
The governor also proposed strengthening the role of the General Migration Directorate through intelligence work. "We have to start using Migration and have Migration function with intelligence, knowing who is entering our country, how long they stay and why they stay longer than they should," he indicated.
Another of Velasco's central proposals was the creation of a Departmental Guard. "We demand that we be able to have our own Departmental Guard, which can protect those from Santa Cruz, just as those from Santa Cruz chose," he stated. The initiative already formed part of his electoral programme and was ratified in previous security meetings; according to the Governorship, it would operate within the framework of autonomous competencies in coordination with national institutions.
In response to President Rodrigo Paz's call for mayors and governors to collaborate in the fight against organised crime, Velasco responded with a decentralising stance: "The best way to help is for governors to become departmental police commanders again." The governor added that deepening autonomy would allow the governorships to act with greater capacity in security matters.
Source: Google News BO — La Paz