Overview
- The PNP and prosecutors, which ran a coordinated sweep Wednesday across eight Lima districts and three prisons, detained 18 suspects tied to a ring that forced bus companies to pay for protection.
- Investigators say the group took more than S/9 million from at least nine firms between 2023 and 2025 by demanding sign‑up fees of S/10,000 to S/20,000 and twice‑monthly payments near S/8,000.
- The money moved through small, repeated deposits known as smurfing into accounts at Apuesta Total and the Atlantic City casino, then came out as supposed betting winnings.
- Prosecutors obtained 15 days of preliminary detention, seized phones, and worked with the Financial Intelligence Unit to freeze linked accounts and assets as they seek call and message records.
- In a separate push from March 31 to April 7, police report 24,009 operations that led to 5,662 arrests including 1,339 wanted suspects, the dismantling of five crime groups and 274 gangs, and seizures of 87 kg of cocaine, 618 kg of marijuana, 18,724 sticks of dynamite, 114 guns, and 295 stolen vehicles.