Kidnappings in Peru: over 5,300 reported cases projected by year's end
Peru records an average of 14 kidnappings daily, according to figures from the Public Ministry. Three detained following rescue of pharmaceutical businessman in Lima.
Three detained after rescue of businessman and projection of 5,300 kidnappings in 2026
Peru's National Police rescued a pharmaceutical sector businessman who had been held against his will for more than four hours inside a vehicle, in an operation that resulted in the capture of three suspected kidnappers. The case, reported by infobae.com, is one of fourteen kidnappings recorded on average each day nationwide, according to Latina Noticias.
According to police reconstruction, those detained held the victim against his will in order to gain access to money from his bank accounts. One of those captured acknowledged to officers that he had arranged an advance on the businessman's salary of approximately 2,500 soles, a sum that was found in the vehicle used for the kidnapping.
In parallel, police are investigating a second case involving the same method. Colonel Holger Obando, head of the External Affairs Division, stated that two additional victims were reportedly held in a vehicle that was operating as a taxi. "We have a report from two victims who state that they have been kidnapped and money has been withdrawn from their bank accounts under threat of death, aboard a vehicle that was functioning as a taxi," the officer stated.
Among those detained in both cases are two Peruvian citizens and one Venezuelan citizen. One of them, identified as Miguel Maturrano, alias "Migue", admitted to having served a previous sentence at Ancón I prison—known as Brigancho—for a violent offence, where he spent approximately one year and four months. Colonel Obando specified that the gang operated mainly in the districts of Independencia, Los Olivos and San Martín de Porres.
Official figures illustrate the scale of the problem. The Public Ministry's Crime Observatory recorded 2,999 kidnapping reports between January and July of this year across the country. Brenda Belleza, manager of Crime Observation at the institution, stated that "North Lima, South Lima, East Lima and Central Lima account for 23.8% of the total reports received nationwide".
Outside the capital, Belleza identified a significant number of cases in regions such as Arequipa, Junín and La Libertad. The record also shows a sustained upward trend compared to previous years.
Based on this progression, the Crime Observatory produced a projection for the close of the year. "On the basis of what we have observed, we can even indicate that by the close of this year we could exceed the figure of five thousand three hundred kidnapping reports nationwide," Belleza warned.
The National Police are continuing investigations to determine whether those detained in the two cases are linked to other similar incidents. Authorities from the Public Ministry insist that the available figures reflect the scale of a crime with an increasing trend in the country.
Source: Google News PE — Crime