Salvadoran Defense Minister Gen. David Munguía announced the detention of six military personnel, two non-commissioned officers and four privates, accused of stealing more than 1,800 grenades that were going to be sold to organized crime.
Salvadoran Defense Minister Gen. David Munguía announced the detention of six military personnel, two non-commissioned officers and four privates, accused of stealing more than 1,800 grenades that were going to be sold to organized crime.
“We must not allow organized crime to penetrate us. We’ve succeeded in dismantling this structure, in which, unfortunately, these elements of the Armed Forces were involved,” General Munguía indicated at a press conference.
According to inquiries conducted by the Army, the six detainees – who were not publicly identified in order not to obstruct ongoing investigations – were assigned by the Armed Forces to responsibilities related to the destruction of surplus armaments, which facilitated their access to the grenades.
According to the defense minister, the grenades were found buried in an area used by the Army for tasks of this kind in the department of La Paz (in southern El Salvador), ready to be “sold to organized crime.”
The six military personnel accused in the theft are being held pending trial in a penitentiary in the department of Santa Ana (in western El Salvador).