A refrigerated truck, seven cars, 300 bales of clothing, undocumented foreigners and even a vehicle with double identity were intercepted this last weekend of November in the town of Pisiga Choque in northern Chile by the National Customs Service and the OS9 of the Carabineros of Chile. The joint operation sought to strengthen security in that border area and also considered dialogue with neighbors regarding the proper use of their properties for the storage of goods.
The operation was concentrated in the Pisiga Choque area and on the non-authorized roads that exist in the vicinity of the Coipasa salt flat. Thanks to this A caravan of vans was stopped on a path that was travelling with bales of clothing and with their lights off, bound for Bolivia., as well as a 2016 thermos truck that was loaded with merchandise and remained inside a property without a license plate or documentation proving its legal entry into the country.
Thermo truck. Photo: Chilean Customs
The Regional Director of the Iquique Customs, Cristian Molina Silva, explained that these Operations respond to a comprehensive policy of persecution of smuggling because it is a crime that not only affects the public treasury, but also impacts thethe security of residents of border areas. “Our Service carries out its inspection operations in specific areas such as checkpoints and outposts, however, we make an extra effort and with the support of the police we expand our radius of action to specific places with the proper entry and registration resolution”, explained Molina, who added that these actions have allowed for the seizure of more than 100 stolen vehicles this year.
One of the seven cars seized. Photo: Chilean Customs
Molina Silva added that during the operation a vehicle with double identity was also found, that is, it had valid documentation both in Bolivia and Chile.Each of these cases was immediately reported to the Pozo Almonte prosecutor's office, which ordered the release of those involved and requested an address in Chile. Regardless of this, our legal teams, as always, will file the respective complaints and we appreciate the constant collaboration of the Carabineros in the face of this type of crime.".
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