The government knows that extortion is one of the critical aspects it has to face in the fight against insecurity, but perhaps it is not considering all angles of the problem. In particular, that of the participation of minors in the crime. An ECData report published yesterday by this newspaper has presented alarming figures on the involvement of the non-adult population in the commission of this crime and on the way in which they are used to prevent the full rigor of the law from falling on those behind it.
In 2022, those held in youth centers in the country for extortion were 73 – an already worrying number – but currently they reach 162, which represents a more than double increase in just four years. In that same period, moreover, they have gone from 4.1% to 7.9% of people who have lost their freedom due to this activity. This circumstance predictably has to do with an increase in the frequency with which the crime in question is committed. In the opinion of various specialists, the greater presence in the national territory of criminal organizations (which are dedicated to this type of crime rather than robbery or robbery) largely explains this phenomenon.
The fact that gangs like Los Pulpos and others use minors to threaten individuals or businesses, or attack them, is due to the fact that they arouse less suspicion in general since, due to their youth, they often disdain the consequences that their actions could bring. The payment of amounts to which they would not otherwise have access and the attenuated sanction that would be imposed if they are captured also function as incentives for them to accept the “jobs.”
Another data that points in the same direction is that provided by the National Youth Centers Program: from 2022 to 2026, the number of minors detained for manufacturing, marketing, use or possession of weapons grew from 82 to 162…
It is evident, in short, that the Executive has to include among its plans to end extortion concrete actions to keep minors away from these networks.
