Operation "Plan Alto Impacto Los Pozos" yields 34 arrests in Santa Cruz
Police and Municipal Guard arrested 34 people at the former Los Pozos market. Knives and a substance similar to marijuana were seized.
Thirty-four arrested in central Santa Cruz following preventive operation
A police operation in the vicinity of the former Los Pozos market in central Santa Cruz de la Sierra concluded with 34 people detained, according to El Deber. Among those arrested were 33 men and one woman; nine of them were homeless.
The procedure, called Plan Alto Impacto Los Pozos, involved police officers, the Tactical Unit of Police Operations (UTOP) and personnel from the Municipal Guard, which operates under the Santa Cruz municipal government.
During searches, cutting and piercing objects, lighters, and a bag containing a greenish substance with characteristics similar to marijuana were found, the nature of which must be confirmed through corresponding laboratory analysis, said departmental police subcommander Julio César Baldivieso.
Baldivieso stated that the checks were intended to prevent criminal acts and strengthen citizen security in the centre of the departmental capital. People who allegedly consumed alcohol in public spaces were also apprehended, within the framework of Law 259, which regulates the consumption and sale of alcoholic beverages.
The operation is part of a series of preventive actions deployed in high-traffic sectors of the city, including El Arenal Park and the former Los Pozos market itself.
Source: El Deber