One of the CICPC police agents involved in the incident, along with a batch of destroyed $100 bills. Photo: Diario Libre.
Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—An uproar has spread across Venezuelan social media platforms after a video surfaced showing neighbors confronting police agents who were caught taking a bag of $100 bills from a collapsed building in La Guaira.
The agents were allegedly assisting in rescue operations this Tuesday, June 30, following the double earthquake that struck the region last week. A few hours later, Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello made it clear that a zero-tolerance policy against corruption is in effect for police officers who dishonor their uniform.
He reported that, following a complaint filed early Tuesday morning regarding officials of the Scientific, Criminal, and Forensic Investigations Corps (CICPC) committing shameless, indecent, and immoral acts in an area devastated by the June 24 earthquakes, the individuals involved were expelled from the institution and now face criminal charges.
Police officers caught stealing during the rescue operation after last week Venezuelan earthquakes are fired and will face justice! https://t.co/ByZFnMVT5c
— Orinoco Tribune (@OrinocoTribune) July 1, 2026
Cabello reiterated that the government will remain completely intolerant of anyone using their uniform to commit acts against morality and the law.
“We will be severe in the event of a major upheaval like this, if there are people who try to take advantage of the pain and the property of others,” Cabello stated categorically, reaffirming the Bolivarian government’s commitment to police ethics.
Expulsion and criminal charges for corrupt officials
Subsequently, the CICPC reported the arrest and expulsion of four agents accused of “appropriating economic values found among the rubble” of La Guaira. The detainees were identified as Aguilar Reyes Maya, Fredy Rafael Lugo Oliveros, Roger Andrés Omaña, and Josue Jhonatan Burgos Sánchez.
In addition to the arrests, the CICPC announced the “definitive and irrevocable separation from their positions” for the four individuals, alongside the initiation of a disciplinary investigation aimed at their formal dismissal.
“It was found that a group of officials,” the CICPC statement reads, “deviating from their duties and taking advantage of the rescue and humanitarian assistance efforts, acted improperly by appropriating valuables found among the rubble.”
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The four arrested officials were taken at the order of the 68th National Prosecutor’s Office of the Public Ministry, which specializes in crimes against corruption.
Far-right influencers quickly attempted to exploit the incident to smear the Venezuelan government and its emergency response to the natural catastrophe. However, analysts agree that the swift institutional response effectively neutralized the far-right narrative and clearly demonstrated the core values of the Bolivarian Revolution.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
OT/JRE/AU
