Crime
Deadly ambush: Seven Peruvian police officers shot and killed in Shining Path territory
The ambush is believed to have been carried out by the Shining Path guerrilla group
February 12, 2023 8:43am
Updated: February 13, 2023 8:51am
At least seven agents of the Peruvian National Police (PNP) were killed this Saturday in an ambush by "suspected terrorists with long-range firearms" in the Valley of the Apumímac, Ene and Mantaro Rivers, in Vraem, an area where Shining Path guerrilla group operates.
"We regret the loss of our police brothers who have been ambushed when they were traveling in a police vehicle in the town of Natividad in Vraem, where seven officers have died and one police officer has survived," the PNP wrote on Twitter.
The agency confirmed the names of the seven deceased agents: Alfredo Loayza Carbajal, Luis Cerron Palacios, Wilder Eliseo Conozco, Iván Muñoz Fasabi, Sandro Villegas Corahiua, Williams Quispe Anchay, Saul Huarco Samaniego. The survivor, who was injured, is Captain Edwin Mego Villogas.
We extend our heartfelt condolences to the relatives and relatives of our brave non-commissioned officers who lost their lives in the line of duty. Honor and glory police brothers!
— Policía Nacional del Perú (@PoliciaPeru) February 11, 2023
One lone survivor, who was injured, Capt. Edwin Mego Villogas, was evacuated to the PNP Luis N. Sáenz National Hospital to be treated.
Our Commander General Raúl Alfaro Alvarado together with the High Command are in the #Diravpol receiving PNP captain Edwin Mego Villogas, who survived the tragic ambush that occurred in the #Vraem in the morning hours. pic.twitter.com/LYfSv1fJEl
— Policía Nacional del Perú (@PoliciaPeru) February 12, 2023
Police sources told EFE that the deceased agents belonged to the National Division of Special Operations (Dinoes) and the Natividad Sector Police Station, in the Pichari district, which belongs to the department of Cuzco and is part of Vraem.
The investigation is ongoing. The culprits are believed to be part of the Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) gang, which functions as an armed protection group for cocaine producers in the region.
TheMaoist terrorist group, responsible for the largest number of victims during the internal conflict in the country between 1980 and 2000, has evolved in recent decades into a drug trafficking mafia and for two decades there have been operations by the Joint Command of the Armed Forces to end with the group.
