Pataz Arrests: Peru Police Hold 12 Accused of Blasting Power Towers to Steal Gold
SECURITY · PERU
Key Facts
- —The country Peru. Pataz, a gold-mining province in the northern La Libertad region, has seen years of violence by armed gangs fighting over mines.
- —What happened Police detained 12 suspected members of the gang Los Parqueros del Jota on 30 September 2026, raiding 23 properties in La Libertad and Lima (Andina, Diario Correo).
- —The numbers More than 240 officers took part, state news agency Andina reported. Police said they seized US$105,456 and S/366,260 (about US$106,500), Correo reported on 1 October.
- —What it means for you Police say the gang blew up power towers to cause blackouts and steal gold. Grid sabotage in Pataz hits mines, workers and nearby towns alike.
- —Still open Whether courts order pre-trial detention, how many tower attacks are linked to the gang, and whether the alleged leader’s arrest holds up.
Peruvian police have detained 12 people in and around Pataz, accused of blowing up high-voltage towers so a gang could raid gold mines in the dark. The raids took place before dawn on Wednesday 30 September.
The group, known as Los Parqueros del Jota, allegedly smuggled explosives from Trujillo to Pataz. Police say the blackouts let members enter formal mine tunnels and carry off gold ore.
A raid across five provinces
More than 240 officers from Diviac, the police unit for highly complex crime, carried out the operation, called Explosión 2026. A court in Parcoy, a mining town in Pataz, issued the warrants.
Officers searched 23 properties in the provinces of Pataz, Sánchez Carrión, Chepén and Trujillo, and in Lima, Andina reported. Eleven suspects were held on ten-day preliminary detention orders, Correo said.
A twelfth suspect, Jahaira Mallqui, was arrested in the act for illegal possession of firearms. The operation was coordinated with the La Libertad prosecutor’s office for organised crime.
What police say they found
Andina first reported US$10,000 in cash, phones and ammunition. Correo later quoted the Diviac chief, Colonel Rober Trujillo Tarazona, giving a much larger haul.
He listed US$105,456, S/366,260 (about US$106,500 at 3.44 soles per dollar on 1 October) and 1.536 million Colombian pesos (about US$460). Officers also took Jamaican and Mexican banknotes, a safe, gold ore, three pistols, a rifle and bulletproof vests.
The gap between the two cash figures has not been explained. The larger one comes from the police unit itself, as quoted by Correo.
How the alleged scheme worked
Police say the gang detonated charges on high-voltage towers to cut power to mining zones. In the blackout, armed members allegedly entered tunnels of formal mines and took the ore.
Andina reported that the group forced other people, including minors, to carry ore out in sacks. Guards with short and long guns allegedly threatened workers and fought rival gangs.
The gold then travelled to Trujillo in trucks on back roads, investigators say. Some drivers were registered in Reinfo, the formalisation register for small miners, and used other firms’ transport permits.
A leader arrested a day later
On 1 October the Interior Ministry announced the arrest of Juan José Santisteban, alias “Jota”, in La Esperanza district of Trujillo, Caretas reported. He is described as the group’s alleged leader.
Officers found explosive emulsions, a fuse, drugs and three phones with him, according to the ministry. He had escaped the main raid the day before.
The raids came on the same day a court ruling on mine access in the district was reported. That case is covered in Pataz Miners Face Faster Exclusion Reviews After Peru Court Sides With Poderosa.
The wider picture is large. Illegal output may now outsell legal production, as reported in Peru’s Illegal Gold Set to Outsell Legal Gold, Worth Up to US$18 Billion.
What Is Not Yet Known
None of the suspects has been charged or convicted, and all are presumed innocent. Prosecutors must still ask a judge for longer pre-trial detention.
Police have not said which tower attacks they link to the gang, or how much gold it allegedly took. The alleged leader’s arrest is reported by Caretas from a ministry statement and is not yet independently confirmed.
Sources: Andina (Peru state news agency), 30 Sep 2026; Diario Correo, 1 Oct 2026; Caretas, 1 Oct 2026; Exitosa, 30 Sep 2026. Exchange rate: open.er-api.com, 1 Oct 2026.
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