“These are already activities that are going beyond the control of the authorities and even more so in areas so remote that they do not have easy access. So, gold production is very high. I remember that some institutions said that illegal mining moved between US$6 billion and US$7 billion. We would believe, and I dare say, that this could be much more,” commented prosecutor Federico Chávarry in an interview with the Institute of Mining Engineers of Peru (IIMP).
He magistrate of the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office Specialized in Environmental Matters of Puno estimated that illegal mining, according to the investigations it has and its rapid expansion, would move up to 12 billion dollars a year.
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This team of prosecutors found booklets in which they not only kept track of the gold that was extracted in the area, but also revealed the identities of people who are dedicated to financing this illicit activity.
“A gram of gold is approximately worth S/ 320, and each month illegal miners extract four kilos of gold, so we are talking about more than S/ 1 million per month. And we are talking about a small mining activity that works with a front loader, an excavator and a dump truck. What happens if we do the calculation and multiply these activities? Because illegal miners work with at least three front-end loaders and four excavators“explained the prosecutor.
Chávarry warned that since May of this year, the investigations linked to illegal mining they have increased by 50%. To date, they have more than 7,200 cases.
“In the office where I work in Puno, from May to date we have had a 50% increase in cases of illegal mining in the areas of the districts that border Madre de Dios and Bolivia, in which mining “illegal and drug trafficking have already formed what is called narco-mining,” he concluded.
