Five suspected members of the criminal gang "Los Feroces de Camaná" were arrested during a police raid carried out in the early hours of Sunday, August 23, 2026, in the settlement of La Punta Vieja, in Camaná province, in Peru's southern Arequipa region.
The operation was led by agents from the Criminal Investigation Division, known as Divincri, of the Peruvian National Police, who had been tracking the location of a vehicle wanted over an aggravated robbery.
According to police, three occupants got out of the car when officers arrived in the area and tried to flee on foot toward a nearby building, but were chased down by the agents. The driver and front-seat passenger were also detained. Officers recovered the vehicle, which had been reported stolen, and seized firearms, ammunition, suspected drugs and communication equipment.
The Peruvian National Police is the country's principal law enforcement body, and its Criminal Investigation Division handles serious and organised crime cases. Arequipa is Peru's second-largest region, and Camaná is one of its coastal provinces.
GPS tracking led police to the suspects
The raid began after officers tracked, via GPS, a car bearing the plate VEX-789 that had an active police warrant. The signal led agents to La Punta Vieja, where the intervention and the attempted escape took place.
Police identified the detainees as Diego Aldo Cruces Salinas, Cristofer Kevin Cuevas Benavente, Jairo Samuel López Márquez, Luis Carlos Lázaro Arahuallpa and Ribelinho Javier Guillén Perales. Police said the five men together had more than 25 prior complaints registered against them, linked to crimes including aggravated robbery, illegal possession of weapons, drug trafficking, endangerment offences and violence against women.
Weapons, drugs and a GPS blocker seized
During the search, agents found three firearms, ammunition and 48 wraps, known locally as "ketes," of suspected cocaine paste, along with a bag of dried marijuana leaves. Officers also seized two Motorola communication radios, a GPS signal blocker, two balaclavas, gloves and five mobile phones.
Police also impounded a second vehicle, bearing the plate CZF-184, and an unregistered smaller vehicle without a plate.
Suspected links to robberies and a kidnapping investigation
Preliminary investigations indicate the detainees may be linked to armed robberies, kidnappings and vehicle thefts in the Pucchún area of Camaná. Investigators are also examining their possible involvement in an assault that took place on August 17 in Punta Colorada, in the Corire-Aplao area.
The five suspects and all the seized items have been placed at the disposal of Peru's Public Prosecutor's Office, known as the Ministerio Público, so the investigation can continue.
