Paraguay extradites to Peru the alleged criminal mastermind "El Monstruo"

Authorities in Paraguay extradited this Wednesday to Peru the alleged leader of a criminal gang Erick Moreno, alias "El Monstruo", one of the most wanted by the Justice of the Andean country, where he must answer for the crimes of robbery, extortion, kidnapping and criminal organization. Moreno, 34 years old, was handed over to the First Brigade of the Paraguayan Air Force (FAP), located in the city of Luque, from where an aircraft of the Peruvian National Police took off at 9:15 local time (12:15 GMT), the head of the Interpol department, Julio Maldonado, informed journalists. The official indicated that the transfer operation of Moreno from a prison in the city of Emboscada (center), about 50 kilometers from Asunción, was carried out "normally" until his handover to a delegation of 23 Peruvian officials who were waiting at the military air base.

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'El Monstruo', captured in Paraguay on September 24th, was previously subjected to a medical examination that determined he was in "favorable" condition to travel, he assured. Maldonado highlighted that Moreno "had no charges in Paraguay", which "facilitated the extradition" to Peru. The Ministry of Justice reported in a statement that at 6:00 local time (9:00 GMT) it complied with the court order for the extradition of Erick Moreno, who had been in pre-trial detention at the Martín Mendoza Social Reintegration Penitentiary Center in Emboscada since September 26, after being captured two days earlier. The Peruvian was handed over to Interpol "under strict security measures, with a high-security deployment" and in coordination with judicial, diplomatic, and prosecutorial authorities, Justice added. On November 17th, Judge Clara Ruiz Díaz granted the extradition request filed by the Third Preparatory Investigation Court of Independence of the Supreme Court of Justice of North Lima, which attributes to Moreno the alleged crimes of kidnapping and criminal organization, which carry a maximum penalty expectation of 30 and 20 years, respectively. As the alleged ringleader of the gang dubbed by the authorities as 'Los injertos del cono norte', the Peruvian Police attributes other cases of extortion that occurred in recent months in Lima. Moreno was included on the list of the most wanted by the Ministry of the Interior of Peru, which offered one million soles ($282,000 or €240,000) for information about the then fugitive.