The Drug Crimes Prosecutor’s Office of the Public Ministry (MP) and agents of the General Subdirectorate of Analysis of Anti-Narcotics Information (SGAIA) of the National Civil Police (PNC) dismantled a criminal organization dedicated to the international transit of chemical precursors for the preparation of fentanyland captured 17 people during 15 raids carried out this Friday, May 8.
The proceedings were carried out within the framework of the Interinstitutional Center against Narcoactivity in Guatemala (CICNAG), after an investigation that made it possible to establish that the criminal structure coordinated the entry and reception in Guatemala of chemical substances from India, whose final destination was Mexico.
Nelly Morataya Aguilar, head of the Drug Crimes Prosecutor’s Office of the Public Ministry, explained that the investigation began after several seizures initially made by air at La Aurora International Airport.
“It was established that it was not a situation related only to one or two people, but that it was a criminal organization specifically dedicated to the coordination and receipt of these substances here in Guatemala,” he stated.
Parcels and land routes
According to Morataya Aguilar, the structure used companies from courier internationally as part of its logistics strategy to enter parcels into the country and subsequently transfer them to Mexico.
“They came in as if it were a parcel when what they actually brought was a dangerous substance,” he said.
The investigation established that the organization maintained coordination with people based in India, Colombia and Mexico. According to the investigations, an alleged ringleader operated from those countries and coordinated the actions with members in Guatemala.
The prosecutor said that they also detected receipts of chemical substances by land, coming from Costa Rica, which were transferred to warehouses before the members of the criminal structure received them.
Among the substances seized are 94 kilograms of 1-boc-4-piperidone34.3 kilograms of hydrochloride 4-piperidone monohydrate and a thousand kilograms of propionyl chlorideprecursors used for the production of fentanyl.
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“These are important sums, since these kilos are only substances that are used to make fentanyl,” said Morataya Aguilar.
Payments with remittances
The prosecutor added that the organization used the national financial system to carry out banking transactions and receive remittances from abroad, with the purpose of giving the appearance of legality to the funds.
“There were inconsistencies in the remittances they received because the remittance was part of giving an appearance of legality to the amounts that were sent here to Guatemala,” he said.
According to the Public Ministry, the investigations also revealed inconsistencies between the economic activity reported by the companies linked to the structure and the registered imports and exports.
“They register imports and exports that do not coincide with the economic activity of their companies,” said the prosecutor.
Morataya Aguilar indicated that those captured will be accused of international transit, criminal associations and money laundering or other assets.