Venezuela: Los Caraguenos [Los Caraqueños] criminal group, including state efforts to combat the group (2014-2015)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Publication Date | 9 September 2015 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | VEN105302.E |
| Related Document(s) | Venezuela : information sur le groupe criminel Los Caraguenos [Los Caraqueños], y compris sur les mesures prises par l'État pour combattre ce groupe (2014-2015) |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Venezuela: Los Caraguenos [Los Caraqueños] criminal group, including state efforts to combat the group (2014-2015), 9 September 2015, VEN105302.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/575529154.html [accessed 19 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa
Information on the Los Caraguenos criminal group could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response. However, the following information on incidents involving the Los Caraqueños criminal group may be useful. Sources report the following:
On 14 March 2010, Venezuelan newspaper Diario Caribazo reported that four members of the Los Caraqueños criminal group, who were accused of the kidnapping of an Argentinian citizen on 9 March 2010, were detained on Margarita Island (Diario Caribazo 14 Mar. 2010). According to the article, other people from that group, which operates in Nueva Esparta, remain at large (ibid.).
Dicho y Hecho, a Carabobo-based newspaper, reports on the detention of two people from Los Caraqueños in Bejuma [in the state of Carabobo] on 15 November 2012 (Dicho y Hecho 16 Nov. 2012). The detainees were accused of selling drugs and unlawful possession of a firearm (ibid.).
On 26 January 2013, Reporte Confidencial, a news source based in Venezuela, reported on the [translation] "dismantling" of a crime group named Los Caraqueños in the state of Nueva Esparta during a police search that resulted in the detention of two people and the death of one person (Reporte Confidencial 26 Jan. 2013). The article indicates that the three people were associated with Los Caraqueños, a criminal group involved in residential theft and burglary (ibid.).
Venezuelan newspaper Diario La Voz reports on the detention of two persons associated with Los Caraqueños in the state of Miranda on 25 July 2013 (Diario La Voz 27 July 2013). According to the article, Los Caraqueños is a criminal group that operates in Caracas and the state of Miranda, is made up of criminals from Caricuao [Caracas] and Caucagua [state of Miranda], and its main criminal activities are vehicle theft and extortion (ibid.).
In May 2014, Diario NotiFalcón, a digital newspaper on Venezuelan issues, reported on the [translation] "dismantling" of a criminal group named Los Caraqueños in the state of Falcón, after four people were arrested by the military (Diario NotiFalcón 3 May 2014). The article indicates that the group's main criminal activity was electronic fraud, including debit card fraud (ibid.).
On 25 September 2014, Diario El Impulso, a newspaper based in Barquisimeto, reported on the [translation] "dismantling" of a criminal group called Los Caraqueños by Lara state police (Diario El Impulso 25 Sept. 2014). The article reports that four members of the group were detained for possession of drugs and firearms (ibid.).
El Sol de Margarita, a newspaper based in Porlamar, reports on the detention on 23 October 2014 of three people associated with Los Caraqueños in Porlamar who were accused of robbery (El Sol de Margarita 25 October 2014).
On 10 January 2015, El Aragüeño, a newspaper based in the state of Aragua, reported on the detention of two persons associated with Los Caraqueños, one for possession of illicit drugs and the other in connection with a 2014 arrest warrant for homicide (El Aragüeño 10 Jan. 2015). The article indicates that the criminal group is based in Caracas with branches in the state of Aragua (ibid.).
On 24 May 2015, El Diario de Los Llanos Barineses, a newspaper based in Barinas, reported on the detention in the state of Barinas of three persons associated with Los Caraqueños by the Bolivarian National Guard (Guardia Nacional Bolivariana, GNV) (El Diario de Los Llanos Barineses 24 May 2015). The individuals were arrested after bystanders reported that passengers on a public transportation vehicle travelling on the José Antonio Páez highway were being robbed (ibid.).
On 16 June 2015, El Tiempo, a newspaper based in Puerto La Cruz, reported that the Sotillo municipal police killed three people and detained one person associated with Los Caraqueños, after they broke into the house of an official from that police force (El Tiempo 16 June 2015).
On 29 June 2015, Venezuelan news source En la Noticia reported that the Lima Blanco municipal police, in the state of Cojedes, detained three people associated with Los Caraqueños (En la Noticia 29 June 2015). The article indicates that the criminal group is involved with the sale and distribution of illicit drugs in Lima Blanco (ibid.).
El Informe, a digital newspaper based in San Cristóbal, reports on the detention of two people associated with Los Caraqueños by the Táchira police in the neighborhood of El Zulia (El Informe 26 July 2015). The article reports that the detainees fled Caracas for the state of Táchira after being threatened with death for their involvement in crimes including killings and assaults, and their establishment of a criminal network in the municipalities of Cárdenas, Guásimos, and Andrés Bello (ibid.). According to the article, the criminal group is called Los Caraqueños because their members are from Caracas (ibid.).
Information on the connection between the criminal groups mentioned in these media reports, as well as the structure of the groups, could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Diario Caribazo. 14 March 2010. "Capturada banda de secuestradores en Margarita." [Accessed 26 Aug. 2015]
Diario El Impulso. 25 September 2014. "PoliLara desmantela banda 'Los Caraqueños.'" [Accessed 26 Aug. 2015]
Diario La Voz. 27 July 2013. Yohadi Arteaga. "Integrantes de 'Los Caraqueños' fueron capturados por Polizamora." [Accessed 26 Aug. 2015]
Diario NotiFalcón. 3 May 2014. Jessica Urribarri. "Desmantelada banda organizada 'Los Caraqueños.'" [Accessed 29 Aug. 2015]
Dicho y Hecho. 16 November 2012. Paula Bauer. "Detenidos dos miembros de la banda 'Los Caraqueños.'" [Accessed 26 Aug. 2015]
El Aragüeño. 10 January 2015. Jeanferich Ontiveros. "Aprehendieron a miembros de tres bandas de robacarros." [Accessed 26 Aug. 2015]
El Diario de los Llanos Barineses. 24 May 2015. "Desmantelan tres bandas criminales y capturan a traficante." [Accessed 28 Aug. 2015]
El Informe. 26 July 2015. "Policía capturó dos criminales de la Banda Los Caraqueños en Táriba." [Accessed 24 Aug. 2015]
El Tiempo. 16 June 2015. "Polisotillo detuvo a integrante de la banda 'los caraqueños.'" [Accessed 24 Aug. 2015]
El Sol de Margarita. 25 October 2014. Karla Marval Esteves. "Atrapan a 'los caraqueños' y 'el duende.'" [Accessed 26 Aug. 2015]
En la Noticia. 29 June 2015. Alba Roquez. "Policía estadal de Macapo capturó tres integrantes de la banda 'los caraqueños.'" [Accessed 29 June 2015]
Reporte Confidencial. 26 January 2013. "Cicpc (NE) desmantela la Banda Los Caraqueños.'" [Accessed 24 Aug. 2015]
Additional Sources Consulted
Internet sites, including: Amnesty International; Diario El Progreso; Diario La Nación; Diario Metropolitano; ecoi.net; Factiva; Freedom House; Human Rights Watch; InSight Crime; United Nations - ReliefWeb; United States - Central Intelligence Agency, Department of State, Embassy in Caracas, Federal Bureau of Investigation; Venezuela - Cuerpo de Investigaciones Científicas, Penales y Criminalísticas, Cuerpo de Policía Nacional Bolivariana, Guardia Nacional Bolivariana, Ministerio de Defensa, Ministerio del Poder Popular para Relaciones Interiores, Justicia y Paz; Washington Office on Latin America.
