Law enforcement deployment in Guárico state, Venezuela, as part of "Zaraza Operation 2024." Photo: X/@dhernandezlarez.
By Misión Verdad – Aug 21, 2024
New elements of depth have emerged surrounding the already proven link between criminal gangs and Edmundo González & María Corina Machado, allowing us to evaluate its real dimension as the backbone of the regime change agenda activated against Venezuela after July 28.
Venezuelan journalist Eligio Rojas, in his program broadcast on La Iguana TV this Monday, August 19, recently presented new data and evidence that detailed the comprehensive approach to the exchanges and interactions between the criminal factor and the “political” factor—led by the extremist opposition—of this agenda, within the context of the presidential elections at the end of last month.
In addition to other organized crime groups such as Tren del Llano, which has already been examined in a previous investigation, the El Pepón gang was noted to have become active during the events of July 28 itself, according to information presented by Rojas, a journalist with extensive experience in crime and security affairs.
While the Tren del Llano made its appearance during the days of greatest conflict through open fire and intimidation, the El Pepón gang, which operates mainly in Zaraza, Guárico state, operated with greater discretion during the presidential campaign, seeking to manipulate the election result, which sheds light on the distribution of roles assigned to organizations with criminal purposes by political actors of the Venezuelan far-right opposition.
According to intelligence reports consulted by Rojas, this organization was given a specific mission: the purchase of votes in favor of the candidacy of Edmundo González Urrutia in areas with a strong territorial and political presence of Chavismo.
The gang’s leadership structure was made up of three individuals, including Yohanny Machuca, alias “El Pepón,” who served as the leader and gave the organization its name.
Machuca was neutralized on August 6 during Operation Zaraza 2024, while the whereabouts of eleven other identified members remain unknown.
Detalle: La Banda del Pepón estaba dedicado a cobrar vacuna en dólares a medianos agro productores de Zaraza (Guárico) así como a los emprendedores de cualquier ramo, según testimonios. El cabecilla del grupo y otros cuatro cayeron abatidos durante operativo policial-militar pic.twitter.com/4mblZ8edTs
— Eligio Rojas (@ELESPINITO) August 7, 2024
Initially, as is common in the rural crime scene, El Pepón emerged to offer “protection” to large local producers and businessmen.
Operating with a contingent of approximately 25 men, the gang was equipped with weapons and communications technology. It soon moved on to other criminal activities, such as collecting “fees” in dollars from small and medium-sized farmers, as well as small entrepreneurs in urban areas.
Tren del Llano, a criminal organization based in Altagracia de Orituco, José Tadeo Monagas municipality, Guárico state, used digital platforms to disseminate videos in which its members, including its central figure, Oscar de Jesús Noguera Hernán, alias “El Diente,” conducted violent acts in the context of political unrest, following the contempt of María Corina Machado in her declarations of electoral fraud.
These multimedia content featured masked and armed individuals who presented themselves as “defenders of the people” and threatened the Venezuelan government. In his statements, “El Diente” proclaimed the existence of an “established base” and asserted his control over the territory, as well as his ability to mobilize violent groups.
🚨| URGENTE: El líder de la banda criminal “Tren del Llano” del estado Guárico, publica un video advirtiendo a las fuerzas de Maduro: “Mi consejo es que escuchando al pueblo, se atrincheren en sus comandos y dejen que el pueblo decida y ponga y quite a quien quiera”. 🇻🇪 pic.twitter.com/ghj4AvkHmA
— Eduardo Menoni (@eduardomenoni) July 30, 2024
His public appearance coincided with a rise in violence in the country for two days after the elections. Between July 29 and 30, armed clashes were reported in the municipality, including sieges of schools, burning of vehicles, and attacks on police facilities.
There is a direct connection between El Pepón and the Tren del Llano, as the latter has established strategic alliances with other smaller-scale criminal organizations. These small cells are affiliated with the Tren del Llano and function as franchises that expand its influence and territorial control.
Operation Zaraza 2024
Operation Zaraza 2024, executed by the Strategic Operational Command of the Bolivarian National Armed Force (CEOFANB), is currently being deployed with the participation of approximately 6,000 personnel, belonging to both police and military forces.
This effort is conceived as a strategic response to the structured organized crime groups operating in the state of Guárico, particularly regarding their involvement in the post-election violence of July 28.
Since its launch on August 6, the operation has covered six of the 15 municipalities in the state of Guárico, focusing on:
- Pedro Zaraza, the municipality of origin of the El Pepón gang, which also included three neighboring municipalities
- José Tadeo Monagas, which serves as the base of operations for the Tren del Llano
- Camaguán, which borders Apure, a state where operations against paramilitaries have already been carried out
As of August 14, 2024, eight individuals were reported neutralized, including, as stated, the leader of the gang El Pepón. 30 arrests have been made so far, and an arsenal was seized that includes 13 firearms (four of which are rifles), 302 cartridges, a grenade, two telescopic sights, eight radio transmitters, ten flashlights, seven chargers, 35 Molotov cocktails, 12 cell phones, and six motorcycles.
Crime as an electoral strategy
“It is valid to ask ourselves: How is it that criminals who charge you a fee offer you to vote for a certain option in exchange for 50, 100, or 200 dollars?” Eligio Rojas stated, referring to the specific actions of the gang in destabilizing the nation. “It is a strange move for a criminal; it does not correspond to his criminal nature.”
Here another question arises: Who gave the order to El Pepón and his group to buy votes in favor of Edmundo González? Were they perhaps his founding fathers? Were they perhaps recruited by Voluntad Popular, the party of María Corina Machado?
These questions raised by the Venezuelan journalist point to the dynamics of the interrelationship that exists between extremist sectors of the opposition and organized crime in the country.
The information and data presented by Rojas serves to prove the thesis that the political objectives of the extremist opposition were not solely and exclusively electoral.
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/AU
Misión Verdad
Misión Verdad is a Venezuelan investigative journalism website with a socialist perspective in defense of the Bolivarian Revolution
