Andean Group - October 2026

After avoiding any fireworks during her first month in office, in late August and early September Peru’s President Keiko Fujimori began moving on her promise of a hardline security strategy. Amid long-running concerns about deteriorating public security, epitomised two days later by the kidnapping of a mining businessman that left four other people dead, on 28 August the government asked congress for expanded security powers. These would enable Fujimori to legislate by decree on security matters and some other issues. The same day, Fujimori declared a state of emergency in the capital Lima and the neighbouring port city of Callao in response to concerns about organised crime.

President Fujimori is seeking the power to deliver major policy changes over a four-month period. The bill, which was submitted to congress on 28 August, asks for the government to be given legislative powers for 120 days, during which time it would aim to introduce new laws regarding citizen security, the economy, and the threat posed by climate change. Prime Minister Luis Galarreta said that the government is aiming to respond to 66 concerns that have been highlighted by various sectors, describing these as “reasonable, logical, and focused above all on delivering order – not only on the streets but also within the State”.

On the security front, one of the key objectives is to establish a legal framework enabling criminal groups to be categorised as terrorist organisations. This, Galarreta has said, would facilitate the deployment of the armed forces against those groups while also strengthening the fight against transnational criminal organisations such as Tren de Aragua, which originated in Venezuela but now operates across the Americas. The military would also be given additional roles supporting the national police in day-to-day operations and in maintaining prison security.

Other proposals include closer surveillance of dangerous criminals after they are released from prison, and changes to telecommunications legislation to support the tracing and blocking of cell phones used in crimes. Telecom companies would be subjected to “rigorous sanctions” for “illegal communications coming from prisons and juvenile detention centres,” according to a government statement outlining the goals of the bill. The changes to telecom law are aimed at tackling extortion, which is often carried out by phone from within prisons. An Ipsos poll published in March found that extortion was the crime causing by far the most public concern, being listed as such by 76% of respondents, followed by corruption (41%) and sexual violence (37%).

Other important changes that the government is seeking under the bill, as highlighted by State news agency Andina, include enabling the armed forces to act in a supporting role during police operations, tighter controls on firearms and explosives, and rehabilitation programmes for young offenders.

To a large extent, Fujimori owes her narrow election victory to the growing public clamour for hardline security policies. If she is to maintain her support base, both among the public at large and in congress, then she will need to show early progress in tackling crime. The political urgency of the issue was highlighted on 30 August by the violent kidnapping of Jenss Lara, a businessman working for local mining firm Minera Matwork. Lara was abducted in Trujillo, in the northwestern region of La Libertad, by gunmen who approached his car posing as police officers before murdering his four travelling companions. Lara was released the following day, reportedly after his family paid a ransom fee.

In a reflection of how high-profile cases such as this could begin to weigh on Fujimori, the kidnapping and quadruple murder was the main factor in the resignation of the national police (PNP) commander, Óscar Arriola, who announced on 7 September that he would be stepping aside the following week. Arriola, who had headed the PNP since 2025 and was appointed by former president Dina Boluarte (2022-2025), had come under mounting fire following the Trujillo case, with deputies from both left and right accusing him of failing to mount an adequate response to rising crime.

Criticism from within the far-right Renovación Popular (RP), which is allied with Fujimori’s Fuerza Popular (FP) in congress, will have caused the most concern within government. RP deputy Diego Bazán said on 31 August that “the resignation of the police commander won’t solve the problem [of rising crime], but let’s be clear: he’s been in the last four governments and the results have been non-existent”.

Arriola was replaced on 16 September by Fredy López Mendoza, who since January had been serving as the head of the PNP’s general staff. His previous roles include stints as head of the aviation police directorate (Diravpol) in Madre de Dios region, as head of the order and public security division in Trujillo, and positions in the anti-corruption (Dircocor) and criminal investigation (Dirnic) directorates. López was cited by national daily Gestión on 8 September as saying that under his leadership the police would deliver the “tranquillity” that he said Peruvians are craving, and pledged to give increased focus to areas outside the capital.

State of emergency

On 28 August President Fujimori declared a 60-day state of emergency in the capital Lima and the neighbouring port city of Callao, with the goal of tackling organised crime and other causes of violence. Under the emergency measures, the armed forces has been mobilised to support the police with security operations.

Alleged leading Tren de Aragua member captured

Peru’s interior minister, César Astudillo, announced the arrest on 29 August of Ibelmery Adon Colina Maldonado, alias ‘R15’, who he said is suspected of leading the Chilean division of Tren de Aragua – a transnational organised crime group that originated in Venezuela. Astudillo said that the arrest took place in Peru’s capital Lima and was the result of coordination between Peruvian and Chilean police forces and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).