Military official arrested during operation to disband car theft ring

SANTIAGO.- 12 people, including one Army sergeant, have been detained in police operations seeking to disband an international organization dedicated to stealing vehicles from the eastern sector of Santiago, clearing their documents and then reselling them in Bolivia.

Case sources have indicated that the leaders of the organization are 27 year-old Marcelo Pérez Morales, 21-year old Carlos Martínez Jara, 27 year-old Jocelyn Herrera Tranamil and 46 year-old Óscar Véliz Haysanglay, who were arrested at  several residences in Quinta Normal.

Meanwhile, the military official was identified as 21 year-old Rodrigo Arias Osorio, who had been one of the individuals in charge of transporting the vehicles to Bolivia. Police have declined to identify which work unit the man is from.

Commander Jorge Ramírez, who is the Chief of Vehicle Reports and Searches (SEBV) told Emol that the operatives were carried out in the municipalities of Santiago, Quinta Normal, Peñalolén, Buin and Iquique. The raids reportedly began simultaneously at 4:30 AM and involved 250 police officers from the GOPE and Special Forces.