El Salvador: Bukele tightens his grip on gangs

The Salvadoran government is increasing pressure on the country's criminal gangs. This was announced by President Nayib Bukele, who has promised a new all-out offensive against gangs. The government's decision was taken after the capture of the perpetrators of the murder of a member of the Salvadoran police in the municipality of Nueva Concepción.

According to a press release from the Salvadoran president, Bukele met this Sunday to discuss new measures to be implemented to curb the Salvadoran gangs. According to the president, these measures address the need to prevent the "reunification of gangs," as may have happened in the department of Chalatenango, in the north of the country.

So far, the Salvadoran president's anti-gang measures have paid off and made a significant improvement to public safety in the country. In the midst of the state of emergency, the homicide rate dropped to 7 murders per 100,000 inhabitants, one of the lowest incidences in Latin America and the lowest in the country's history. At the beginning of May, President Bukele boasted of in the four years he has been in power.

Murder of a policeman

On May 16, police officer Maximino Vásquez was murdered while patrolling the streets of the municipality of Nueva Concepción, in Chalatenango. The Salvadoran government's reaction was immediate, and a large military and police operation was launched to find those responsible for Vásquez's death. Nearly 5,000 members of the Armed Forces and slightly more than 500 police officers participated in the search and capture efforts.

"They will pay dearly for the murder of our hero," President Bukele said at the time. The large-scale operation resulted in the arrest of those responsible. According to Salvadoran authorities, 50 "terrorists" were detained in the operation. According to the government, they are members of the criminal group Fulton Locos Salvatruchos. Among them are the three alleged killers of agent Vásquez.

According to the National Civil Police, the gang members , a mega-prison with a capacity to hold 40,000 inmates. In April, Minister of Justice and Security Gustavo Villatoro assured that the number of gang members arrested by authorities was at least 67,000.