HomeNewsBriefPeru Arrests 'Successor' to Captured Shining Path Leader
BRIEF

Peru Arrests 'Successor' to Captured Shining Path Leader

PERU / 5 MAR 2012 BY CHRISTOPHER LOOFT EN

Authorities in Peru say they have arrested the presumed successor to Shining Path leader "Comrade Artemio," who was captured in February.

Walter Diaz Vega (alias "Freddy" or "Percy") was allegedly in charge of reconstituting the armed column in the region of Upper Huallaga.

National police chief Raul Salazar said that the authorities had moved in quickly on Saturday to arrest Diaz, in order to prevent him from executing informants within the group who helped bring about Artemio's capture.

InSight Crime Analysis

If Diaz was in fact the successor to Artemio, this would indicate that the group is severely weakened, and may have been thoroughly penetrated by the security forces.

As InSight Crime noted, Artemio's capture left no clear successor, making it likely that the Upper Huallaga-based faction would disintegrate in his absence. The arrest of his alleged successor makes this seem still more probable.

However, it does not seem certain that Diaz was Artemio's designated successor, only that he was one of the high-ranking members left in power after the capture. Two guerrillas known as “Tiburcio” and “Braulio” have also been named as possible leaders of what remains of the group.

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

CARIBBEAN / 29 JUN 2021

The owner of an armored transport company has been charged for his part in a transnational dirty gold network that…

PERU / 21 MAR 2023

A dozen people are dead in Peru since February amid escalating violence involving the Shining Path guerrilla group.

BOLIVIA / 3 MAR 2023

As the CITES treaty hits 50, we take a look at its successes, failures, and future challenges in reducing the…

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Continues to be Highlighted

3 MAR 2023

This week, InSight Crime co-director Jeremy McDermott was the featured guest on the Americas Quarterly podcast, where he provided an expert overview of the changing dynamics…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela's Organized Crime Top 10 Attracts Attention

24 FEB 2023

Last week, InSight Crime published its ranking of Venezuela’s ten organized crime groups to accompany the launch of the Venezuela Organized Crime Observatory. Read…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime on El País Podcast

10 FEB 2023

This week, InSight Crime co-founder, Jeremy McDermott, was among experts featured in an El País podcast on the progress of Colombia’s nascent peace process.

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Interviewed by Associated Press

3 FEB 2023

This week, InSight Crime’s Co-director Jeremy McDermott was interviewed by the Associated Press on developments in Haiti as the country continues its prolonged collapse. McDermott’s words were republished around the world,…

THE ORGANIZATION

Escaping Barrio 18

27 JAN 2023

Last week, InSight Crime published an investigation charting the story of Desafío, a 28-year-old Barrio 18 gang member who is desperate to escape gang life. But there’s one problem: he’s…