On Monday afternoon, mining businessman Jens Marty Lara Tantaquilla, who was kidnapped during the early hours of Sunday in Trujillo, was released near his home, according to information accessed by El Comercio. Preliminary reports indicate that his family may have paid a sum of money to secure his release. However, the circumstances and conditions under which this occurred are still under investigation.
Hours earlier, in the morning, the head of the La Libertad Police Region, General PNP Ricardo Espinoza, reported the capture of alleged suspects involved in the attack and stated that necessary procedures are being carried out to clarify the crime. The kidnapping of Lara Tantaquilla occurred during an armed raid that left four people dead and has once again put the activities of criminal organizations operating in Trujillo under scrutiny.
The kidnapping of mining businessman Jens Marty Lara Tantaquilla and the murder of four people traveling in the same vehicle have once again brought the criminal activities linked to Los Pulpos under the spotlight of the Peruvian National Police (PNP). This organization has sown fear in Trujillo and other northern regions of the country for decades through extortion, kidnappings, contract killings, and more recently, activities related to illegal mining.
A prominent name stands out in the current structure of this organization: Jhonsson Smit Cruz Torres, alias ‘Jhonsson Pulpo’, identified by the Police as its current leader. A fugitive from justice and considered one of the most wanted criminals in the country, he faces a life sentence for homicide, and authorities attribute over a hundred crimes to him.
His story within Los Pulpos began early. At 17, Jhonsson Cruz Torres took over the criminal organization that had been led by his father, Jhon Cruz Arce, alias ‘John Pulpo’, after he was imprisoned. Under the young leader, the gang gained greater prominence in the criminal scene of La Libertad and expanded its operations, mainly through extortion and kidnappings characterized by their violence.
An organization passed from father to son
Before Jhonsson took command, his father and uncles had already marked an era of crime in Trujillo. Jhon Cruz Arce, along with his brothers Miller and Milton Cruz Arce, were linked to a structure that for years sought to impose its dominance through extortion and homicides.
The organization also did not remain static. Over the years, it changed members, established alliances, and gave rise to new subordinate structures. General PNP Víctor Revoredo Farfán previously explained to El Comercio that groups such as ‘La Nueva Jauría’ emerged around this criminal circle, composed of the so-called ‘cachaquitos’, lower-ranking criminals used to carry out various illicit activities.
“This criminal circle has formed La Nueva Jauría, which you know as their ‘cachaquitos’. It is led by Jhonsson Cruz and his brothers,” explained Revoredo.
According to the officer, the evolution of Los Pulpos was also marked by their ability to move into other illicit businesses and establish alliances according to their interests. The organization went from imposing fees on public transportation in the northern part of the country to being involved in crimes related to land trafficking and illegal mining.
“They started by placing octopus stickers on northern public transportation, charging fees. Then this criminal group emerged, and Jhonsson Cruz Torres appeared,” he said.
It was during this transition that Jhonsson began to build his own structure. According to Revoredo, the leader established connections with people he met during his time in juvenile centers in Trujillo and later recruited lower-ranking criminals who were deployed in different parts of the city.
“According to their criminal interests, they have recruited their ‘cachaquitos’ and then moved to different parts of the city,” the general said.
Alliances to extend their dominance
The history of Los Pulpos is also marked by successive alliances between organizations operating in different areas of Trujillo. According to the reconstruction carried out by the Police, initially, there was an alliance between groups linked to Los Ochenta and La Esperanza. Later, the coordination with structures from El Porvenir ended up shaping Los Pulpos.
Over the years, La Jauría and later La Nueva Jauría appeared, structures that would have allowed the organization to expand its range of action and maintain a presence in various criminal activities.
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“They keep forming alliances seeking expansion, which is why there is talk of criminal supremacy and hegemony. ‘If you don’t comply, I’ll kill you,’ they react,” explained Revoredo.
The officer also stated that Jhonsson’s family members played an important role in his formation within the criminal world. Among them, he mentioned one of his uncles, whom he described as his “main criminal trainer.”
During the years Jhon Cruz Arce was imprisoned, the Police also detected actions by members of Los Pulpos aimed at securing his transfer from the Challapalca prison to Trujillo. According to Revoredo, behind this intention was part of the escalation of kidnappings attributed to the organization.
“The forces of Los Pulpos, the ‘cachaquitos’, have been desperate to achieve a transfer of John Pulpo from Challapalca to Trujillo. That is why there is desperation in the kidnappings and the impact,” he declared.
‘Jhonsson Pulpo’s’ father returned to the streets
Jhon Cruz Arce, identified for years as the leader of Los Pulpos and father of Jhonsson, regained his freedom on July 15, 2025, after spending 17 years in prison. His release came after the Tacna Judiciary revoked a first-instance ruling, issued in May, that had rejected a habeas corpus filed by his defense.
Cruz Arce had been serving a 25-year sentence since 2008 for the murder of his former partner and a man in Trujillo. However, he accessed penitentiary benefits that allowed for a reduction in his effective time in prison.
The applied benefit considered two days of work and study for one day of imprisonment, instead of the six days of work and study for one day of incarceration that would have corresponded under a special regime.
By then, however, the leadership of Los Pulpos had already passed to a new generation. Jhonsson Cruz Torres was identified by authorities as the heir to the criminal structure built by his family and as the man who had led the organization into a new phase.
Half a million soles for his whereabouts
Currently, Jhonsson Smit Cruz Torres remains a fugitive from justice. The Ministry of the Interior’s Rewards Program offers S/500,000 in exchange for information leading to his whereabouts, while authorities consider the hypothesis that he remains in hiding outside Peru.
The search for the leader has also led Peruvian authorities to coordinate operations with police from other countries in the region. One of these operations resulted, in January of this year, in the capture of Keysi Alessandra Salvatierra Vigo, 29, partner of Jhonsson Cruz Torres.
The intervention was carried out through joint work by the PNP, the Extortion Investigation Division (Divinext) of Dirincri, the Bolivian Police, and the Chilean Investigations Police (PDI). Salvatierra Vigo was located in an apartment in La Paz, Bolivia, where, according to the Police, she was hiding from authorities.
There was an arrest warrant against her for the kidnapping of Alan Ríos Guevara, son of a councilor from the El Porvenir district in Trujillo. The criminals demanded US$300,000 for his release. The victim was held captive for 15 days before being freed.
While various members of his circle have been captured and his father returned to the streets after 17 years in prison, Jhonsson Cruz Torres remains out of the reach of authorities. His name is now back at the center of investigations in Trujillo, where the Police are trying to establish responsibilities behind a new day of violence: four people killed and a mining businessman kidnapped during the early hours.
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