Criminals Shot A Minibus Driver For Refusing To Pay Money To Extortionists

A public transport driver identified as Mario Quispe, 35, was murdered in the district of San Martín de Porres (SMP).

The attack occurred in the Cerro Candela area, when the victim was driving a minivan from the Transporte Nor Lima company. The crime was allegedly motivated by the company's refusal to pay the fees demanded by extortion gangs operating in the area.

The murder occurred in a context of increasing violence against transporters. According to witnesses, the extortionists, presumably Venezuelan, placed stickers on the transport units to identify those who paid the sums demanded.

The murder occurred on the same day that the state of emergency declared in several districts of Lima and Callao ended, a measure adopted by the Government to stop the wave of crime in the capital.

Paradoxically, hours after the murder in SMP another driver from the same company was shot on Carlos Izaguirre Avenue, in front of the Lima Norte Prosecutor's Office. The latter is in critical condition.

"They demand money from us every day. If we don't pay, they threaten or kill us," said one of the affected drivers.

These criminal gangs operate with such impunity that they even divided the transport routes into "territories", identified with stickers representing different criminal groups.

The Nor Lima transporters are not the only ones affected. The extortions reached companies of various modes of transport in Lima and Callao, which shows a structural problem that transcends a single jurisdiction.