Demons in Challapalca: A harmful family gathered in “the Alcatraz del altiplano”

The Porvenir District became the cradle of a large number of criminals who starred in terrifying news in the media. Their time on news and police reports brought popularity to these infamous Peruvians. Among them were the criminal gangs called “Los Lobos”, “Los Malditos de Río Seco” and “Los Octopos”. The latter dominated the territory under the command of John Smith Cruz Arce, known under the alias 'John Octopus'. In his record, he has been syndicated with the murder of the director of the El Milagro prison in Trujillo, Jorge Izquijano, who was killed in October 2016.

He and his accomplices specialized in extortion, having a favoritism for shoemakers. They also caused terror among taxi drivers, collectives and micro buseros. In order to have greater control, an elite consisting of members of the Cruz family would have been formed, according to an analysis carried out by the Police.

This offender has a long history of the detention centers that exist in Peru. He has been part of the prisons of Trujillo, Cajamarca, Piedras Gordas 1, Juliaca and his last stop was the Challapalca prison, where he will enter the 'Chiclayo Monster' in the coming days. This space is known for its isolation, since it is far from the population, it suffers from low temperatures, the absence of visits and failures in water and electricity services.

As part of the tour that the América Televisión cameras made in 2021, it was possible to obtain the statements of John Smith Cruz Arce, who can only move between the corridors chained of hands and feet, and always surrounded by members of INPE.

Now serving time for murder and illegal possession of weapons, the leader of “Los Octopos” laughingly described that his actions were “something bad he did on the streets.” Since his first internment in 2005, he has not felt full freedom again.

LOST IN HIS PAST

One of the most notable crimes he committed was the murder of his ex-partner and his new life partner. He shot them without guilt, let alone think about the consequences. In his statements to Channel 4, he stated that he “lost everything” when he arrived at the Challapalca prison. Even this obnoxious place for convicts became a meeting space where he saw his father and son again.

In his own words, he narrated that his 26-year-old son (tried for extortion) is sharing a pavilion with him at more than 4000 meters above sea level. Their greatest reference also lived with them. “My father too, he left in October and at 7 months he died of COVID-19. He was brought to him for organized crime,” he concluded.

ISOLATED FROM EVERYONE

This is one of the prisons that brings together the most dangerous criminals who have been detained in Peru and who are unlikely to reintegrate into society. Although the authorities allow the entry of men and women, visits are not as frequent as prisoners would like, since accessing the place is complicated and distant. In the nearest town there are no accommodation services or other resources that can be used by visitors.

Due to the pandemic, the maximum security prison has changed some of its rules of coexistence and benefits for its residents. As of May 2021, 158 inmates accessed the virtual visiting room in order to strengthen the bond with their families, due to the fact that their attendance was suspended.

According to the Single Platform of the Peruvian State, the video call module that bears the slogan “Promoting the family bond”, has two laptops, where those housed will communicate once a week, adopting all biosecurity measures. INPE thus guarantees the right to defence and communication, in order to consolidate the process of resocialization.

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