Aldo Carlos Mariños, a candidate for the regional government of La Libertad and former mayor of Pataz, has changed his account of his ties to one of the witnesses in the massacre linked to the kidnapping of gold trader Jenss Lara. Mariños initially denied that the young man who transported one of the alleged gunmen worked for him, but has now acknowledged he had seen him and met him on "two or three" occasions.
In an interview with La República, Mariños insisted the young man was never his employee, escort or security staff, and denied paying him for any such service. He said he does not have security and does not pay for security. His explanation came after two witnesses told authorities they had worked for him. One said he was Mariños's private driver and was paid 1,300 soles a month, while the other said he worked as an escort for 650 soles every two weeks, according to information published by Territorio Tomado.
Mariños changes his story
Mariños acknowledged that the photographs circulating online show the young man alongside him during campaign events. He told La República the young man had entered his circle through Eduardo Liu, a former municipal official who, according to Mariños, had tried several times to convince him to hire security.
Mariños said Liu introduced the young man to him as someone he knew, and that Liu had even offered to support his campaign with T-shirts. Mariños said he never took the time to learn more about the young man and that when he later saw him at campaign activities, he simply took him for someone who had gravitated toward his political circle.
Territorio Tomado also reported on Friday that after being confronted with a photograph showing him with the young man, Mariños admitted to having been with him on "two or three" occasions. By his account, one of those encounters took place at the La Hermelinda market, where the young man approached him. The outlet also reported that the witness said he had worked for Mariños for about a month and a half.
Mariños told La República that during his campaign activities, many people approach him to take photographs and join walkabouts, so he considers it possible that more images exist of him alongside people who are not part of his team. He said the fact that someone appears near him does not mean he knows them or that it makes them his security.
New leads in the Jenss Lara case
The case has raised further questions about the connections surrounding the massacre in which four people were killed during the kidnapping of Jenss Lara. Epicentro TV reported that one of the victims, Luis Rojas Ramos, a martial arts instructor, had taken over as administrator of the Consorcio Supervisor Allauca on August 12.
According to the outlet, the company began operating on December 11, 2025, and five days later secured a 354,000-soles contract with the Provincial Municipality of Pataz, during Mariños's administration as mayor. The finding opens a new line of inquiry into the business and political relationships surrounding the case.
Epicentro TV also broadcast the testimony of a second companion of the young man, who said he had driven an armed, hooded man away from the area where the massacre took place. According to this account, the two men heard a burst of at least 15 gunshots, after which an armed man got into their vehicle and told them to drive on. The man reportedly directed a route and then ordered them to take him straight to his house.
The witness also gave the name of a National Police non-commissioned officer who, according to his statement, owns a Nissan Versa and went to the scene to follow the suspected gunman. Authorities investigating the kidnapping and the four killings will need to verify these details.
Mariños weighs filing a complaint
Asked again about his earlier announcement that he would investigate and file complaints against anyone linking him to the alleged security arrangement, Mariños said he first wants formal access to the case file to see what has been stated to authorities. He said that once he has access to the documentation, he will consider going to the appropriate body to file complaints against anyone claiming he hired or paid for security services, calling the allegation completely false.
Mariños also attributed the accusations to what he called an attempt to damage his candidacy, and pointed to possible political motives that he suggested could be behind the witnesses coming forward.
Investigators must now determine whether the two young men linked to Mariños actually had any working relationship with the candidate, what they were doing in the weeks before the massacre, and whether either had any involvement in or knowledge of what happened during Jenss Lara's kidnapping.
