Playa del Carmen, Q. R. — The State Attorney General’s Office has reported on the dismantling of a gang of extortionists and drug dealers that kept Playa del Carmen and Cancun establishments under threat.
Agents from the FGE, along with State Police, arrested eight people after reports of gunfire on 115 Avenue of Playa del Carmen. Subsequently, Fernando “N” was arrested after responding officers found him in possession of marijuana and a loaded weapon.
After an investigation, seven others — five men and two women — were taken into police custody on drug and extortion charges. Juan “N”, Carlos “N”, Gabriel “N”, Miguel “N” and Jesús “N” all remain in police custody.
According to a report by the FGE, Fernando “N” “participated in the extortion of employees of a seafood restaurant in Cancun from whom they demanded the amount of 30,000 pesos in exchange for not shooting at that business.”
Earlier this week, a nightwatchman from a Cancun seafood restaurant was shot. It was the second time this year the restaurant was the target of gunfire.
Similarly, Celia “N” was arrested for allegedly being in charge of collecting extortion money from businesses in Playa del Carmen, while Graciela “N”, the second female arrested, was secured after being found with cartridges and marijuana.
According to the FGE, she is also believed to have provided firearms to others who shot up the façade of businesses in order to pressure them into paying the extortion demands.
