Peru Imposes Curfew and Suspends Mining After 13 Miners Murdered

The Peruvian government imposed a nighttime curfew in the northwestern province of Pataz following the murder of 13 kidnapped miners, the BBC reported.  

As Latin America’s biggest producer of gold, Peru has faced an upswell of illegal mining as well as racketeering and contract killings since the price of the precious metal topped $3,500 an ounce. 

Peruvian President Dina Boluarte ordered the suspension of mining activities for a month as additional police and soldiers were deployed in the region. Critics have condemned the government’s response as late and inefficient, according to the Guardian. 

La Poderosa, the Peruvian company that owns the gold mines where the murdered miners worked, said they had been kidnapped by “illegal miners colluding with criminals” on April 26. 

Forensic evidence suggests the men were shot more than a week before their bodies were found. 

The victims worked for a subcontractor, R&R, which operated at La Poderosa’s mine. They were sent to face a group that had taken control of the mine but were ambushed and kidnapped as they sought to take it back. 

The captors shared videos of the 13 men in a mine shaft, tied up and naked, in an attempt to extort ransom money. The footage caused outrage in Peru. 

Pataz is embroiled in a struggle over mining pits, with illegal miners and criminals clashing with legal miners. Illegal mining is the most lucrative criminal activity in Peru, accounting for $9 billion between 2014 and 2024. 

La Poderosa said a total of 39 people linked to the company had been killed by criminal gangs in Pataz despite a large police presence and the state of emergency enacted in February 2024. 

Last year, thousands of small-scale gold miners blocked highways and camped outside congress, asking the government to keep a registry, known as REINFO, of informal and illegal gold miners that would protect them from prosecution while they formalize their activities.