Woman arrested in Lima as final fugitive from network that defrauded 30,000 migrants in US
Karount Jannet Toledo Vásquez, 49, was detained in San Juan de Lurigancho following a red notice from Interpol for fraud, extortion and money laundering.
Arrest in San Juan de Lurigancho closes search for final fugitive from mass fraud network
A 49-year-old woman wanted by the United States justice system was detained while walking along a public street in the district of San Juan de Lurigancho in Lima. According to infobae.com, she is Karount Jannet Toledo Vásquez, identified as the final fugitive from a criminal organisation linked to extortion, fraud and money laundering that operated between 2013 and 2018.
The operation resulted from police surveillance work and was carried out in compliance with an outstanding warrant and a red notice issued by Interpol in 2024. The operation involved participation by the United States Diplomatic Security Service, the Criminal Investigation Directorate (Dirincri) and the Organised Crime Investigation Division (Divincco) of the Peruvian National Police.
The criminal network operated from a clandestine office in Lima fitted out as a call centre. From that location, its members contacted Spanish-speaking Latin American migrants in the United States by telephone with fraudulent offers of English courses and other products. United States investigations attribute losses exceeding 15 million dollars and more than 30,000 affected individuals to the organisation.
Among documented practices were threats of deportation and references to alleged outstanding debts, tactics used to intimidate victims and demand additional payments. The structure targeted its actions specifically at Spanish-speaking residents in US territory.
Toledo Vásquez had previously been detained in 2019 but was released. Her recent location in San Juan de Lurigancho allowed authorities to execute a new arrest within the judicial process linked to the network.
The United States Embassy confirmed that the detainee is the final identified fugitive from the organisation. Other Peruvian citizens involved in the same case have already been extradited to the United States, where they are serving sentences for their participation in the offences.
Toledo Vásquez has an approved passive extradition request to appear before United States courts for alleged offences of extortion, fraud and money laundering. The detainee remains at the disposal of the Peruvian justice system while necessary proceedings continue to execute the international request, a process that requires the involvement of Peruvian judicial authorities before any transfer to United States territory.
Source: Google News PR — San Juan