The Pataz Unified Command, made up of the Armed Forces and the National Police of Peru, shot and released 15 mine security workers who had been kidnapped by criminal groups. This new act of violence would confirm that criminal organizations continue to operate in the province, which has been in emergency due to citizen insecurity since February 2024.
ARMED ATTACK
The kidnapping of the workers took place at 11 pm last Saturday. According to information from the Ministry of Defense, criminals shot at the Villalba mine entrance, located in the Porfía ravine, level 2840, in Pataz.
The criminals threatened to kill the collaborators of that mine and took 15 members of the security personnel hostage. Given this, a representative of the company notified the authorities, who ordered the deployment of agents from the Joint Special Force of the Armed Forces and the Special Response Group Against Organized Crime (Grecco) of the Police.
They began operation “Hammer 3”, aimed at rescuing the hostages. During the raid, police and soldiers engaged in gun battles with the criminals. The agents managed to reach the entrance to the mine and deactivated explosive devices that were ready to detonate. Then, they continued entering the facilities, until they managed to secure the area.
RESCUE
The release of the hostages ended at 9 a.m. on Sunday. However, the kidnappers managed to escape through one of the entrances to the mine, after detonating several explosive charges at the main entrance and the internal gallery of the mine mouth. This caused the infrastructure to collapse and made it impossible for law enforcement to follow them.
“The State has acted with determination and unity. Operation ‘Hammer 3’ shows that the Armed Forces and the National Police operate in an integrated, professional and permanent manner, protecting the lives of citizens and reestablishing the principle of authority. In the face of organized crime, the State’s response, through its Armed Forces, is firm, sustained and within the constitutional framework,” said Army General David Ojeda Parra, head of the Joint Command of the Armed Forces of Peru.
UNSTOPPABLE
The province of Pataz has been in emergency for 22 months. This measure, which came into force on February 13, 2024, has had some modifications. On May 9 of this year, because crime continued to advance in the area, a curfew was decreed between 6 in the afternoon and 6 in the morning, and it was ordered that the Armed Forces assume control of internal order, with the support of the National Police of Peru. Then, as of June 8, the mandatory social immobilization was reduced from 10:00 pm to 5:00 am, which remains to this day.
