Operation "El Dorado": criminal network dismantled in prisons with support from penitentiary officials
A joint operation in Coquimbo resulted in 16 arrests, including five Gendarmería agents, targeting an organisation that smuggled drugs and other illegal goods into the prison system.
Operation "El Dorado": criminal network dismantled in prisons with support from penitentiary officials
An investigation by multiple institutions culminated in the capture of 16 people in different locations across the country, among them five active agents from the organisation in charge of prisons. The operation, named "El Dorado", was directed by the specialised unit investigating high-complexity crimes at the Coquimbo Public Prosecutor's Office, with support from the local prosecution office in Illapel, PDI detectives and Gendarmería personnel.
The investigation focused on a criminal structure operating inside the Illapel Preventive Detention Centre that had collaborators on the outside. The gang allegedly engaged in introducing prohibited substances and other contraband items into the prison, as well as carrying out illicit financial transactions.
The police deployment included 21 judicial warrants to search properties, executed in a coordinated manner in Illapel, Salamanca, Quilicura and Tomé. In addition to the penal facility, private residences linked to the investigated individuals were searched.
Of the 16 arrested, 14 were detained through judicial orders processed beforehand, whilst two were apprehended at the scene. The participation of penitentiary officials among those arrested reveals a network of complicity within the prison system.
In the operations, authorities seized narcotics of various types—marijuana, ketamine, ecstasy and clonazepam—mobile phones, cash, five vehicles and other goods allegedly linked to criminal activity.
The accused must appear before the guarantee court in Illapel on Thursday 11 June 2026, where a hearing on the detention review and formalisation will be held.
The Public Prosecutor's Office stated that, given that there are still ongoing investigations with a confidential nature, further details will not be provided until the initial judicial phase is completed.
_Source: ADN Radio_
Source: Google News CL — Crime