There are reports that police they try to plant drugs in people’s luggage who arrive in Venezuela from Colombia to later extort them. This was reported this Friday by Rocío San Miguel, president of the non-governmental organization Control Ciudadano.
The irregularity would be occurring in the San Cristóbal passenger terminal, in the state of Táchira, at the hands of officials assigned to the Canine Brigade of the Bolivarian National Police. There, the officials they would be putting illicit substances in the belongings of citizens during searches.
In a short video broadcast on social networks, the moment in which a police officer takes a woman’s clothes out of a bag is observed. “If we manage to get something here…”, the official said, until he realized that a citizen, alleged companion of the possible victim, was recording it.
“Why is this recording here?” He asked another, according to what can be heard. At that moment, and in the middle of a struggle with her bag, the traveler tried to explain to her that another officer “put a little bag” in his luggage, but the man refused to listen to her.
Alert: They denounce that in the passenger terminal of San Cristóbal Edo. Táchira, PNB officials, attached to the Canine Brigade, introduce drugs in the luggage of people from Colombia, to extort money from citizens
Prosecutor 20 of Táchira investigates complaints https://t.co/K19QJBSgYC
– Rocio San Miguel (@rociosanmiguel) July 29, 2022
The attorney general of chavismo, Tarek William Saab, who broadcast the video, reported on Thursday that he appointed the 20th Prosecutor of the Public Ministry in Táchira to investigate and punish the “alleged arbitrary investigations and abuse of authority” at the San Cristóbal passenger terminal. He identified the officer as Elvis Belén, from the Canine Brigade of the Bolivarian National Police.
He did not mention, however, that drugs were being planted on people.