The effect "cockroach" in the "huachicol": the flight has migrated from gasoline to LPG

The federal government's strategy to fight fuel theft in Mexico has caused a "badroach" effect, namely: encouraged gangs to "migrate" to other criminal activities such as the theft of LP gas (liquefied petroleum), which is not recent, but has increased.

According to the data of Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) obtained thanks to the law on transparency, covert takeovers for theft of liquefied petroleum gas increased from 67 in 2012 to 166 in 2017, an increase of 140%.

The same president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, admitted that "huachicol" or LP gas theft also affects Pemex's finances and represents losses for the country of about 1,000 million dollars.

He said that in 2018, the theft of liquefied petroleum gas in Pemex pipelines has added more than 58,000 tonnes per month in the country and more than half has been subtracted in the core area.

Mexico City, Queretaro, Puebla, Tlaxcala, Guanajuato, Veracruz and Hidalgo are the states most affected by this crime.. With the exception of Tlaxcala, the rest is also distinguished by theft of species.

However, while the "huachicol" of gasoline has declined from the federal strategy of struggle, the theft of liquefied petroleum gas has increased, especially in the State of Mexico and in the municipalities of Puebla located in the region known as the "Red Triangle", on the border with Veracruz, which was the epicenter of "huachicol" in the central region of the country.

Arturo de Rosas, deputy of the Morena party in Puebla, badured that in its state, the number of illegal takeovers for gas theft has dropped by 80%. But now, the new big business of "hachicoleros" is the LP gas theft. "It is at its peak," he said.

On Thursday, February 14, the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic (FGR) dissolved in Puebla a flock of gas LP which operated in the municipalities of Huejotzingo, San Pedro Cholula and Amozoc.

In the operation the authorities seized 140,000 liters of this fuel, 40 hoses, 3 semi-trailers, 9 fixed tanks and 44 cylindersand arrested 23 people who would be involved.

"It's kind of a badroach effect, because (the" huachicol "groups) have moved on to other crimes," said the local legislator.

In the State of Mexico, the municipalities most affected by the theft of liquefied petroleum gas are Atlacomulco, Toluca, Acambay, Jiquipilco, Ecatepec, Ixtlahuaca, Tonanitla, Teoloyucan, Axapusco, Chalco, Tezoyuca and Nezahualcoyotl.

In these, between 2018 and 2019, the authorities recovered 188 977 liters of LPG of illegal origin from agents, which is sold mainly in the municipalities of Los Reyes la Paz and Chimalhuacán.

In the Mexican municipality of Zumpango, authorities have recently located and guarded a building in which eight stolen vehicles, including two tankers loaded with approximately 90,000 liters of propane.

Faced with these events more and more frequent, the federal government has already added liquefied petroleum gas in its strategy against "huachicol", and also studies the main companies dedicated to the distribution of this hydrocarbon.

Companies include Grupo Soni, Soni Gas and Global Gas. It also targets the Banco del Bajío for alleged transactions with resources of illegal origin.

The FGR, for its part, studies financial transactions in cash for more than 800 million pesos per yearIn recent years, the companies under investigation have recorded annual revenues of more than 5,000 million pesos and average profits of 387 million.

However, before the Tax Administration Service (SAT) said he did not make a profit.