Crime in Peru results in costs of 71.6 billion soles ($25.5 billion) each year in efforts to combat delinquency, loss to victims and legitimate resources siphoned for illicit purposes, Spanish news agency Efe reported last week.
The total is equal to approximately Peru’s national budget last year and 19 percent of the South American nation’s gross domestic product, according to a report by the National Council for Citizen Security.
Meanwhile, criminals brought in a total of 45.8 billion soles ($16.4 billion) in 2009. Drug trafficking resulted in 36 billion soles ($12.8 billion) in 2009, while money laundering totalled 9.75 billion soles ($3.4 billion) and kidnapping and robberies 32 million soles ($11 million).
“The members of organized gangs have so many resources that each one in the group is able to spend 14,400 soles ($5,142) to pay for lawyers in fight so they don’t go to prison,” said the head of the council and former director of Peru’s National Police, Eduardo Perez.
The Peruvian state and private companies spend a total of 9.31 billion soles ($3.33 billion) in prevention, judicial processes and sanctions. Victims of crime lose 4.94 billion ($1.77 billion) and economic damages in the country total 11.5 billion soles ($4.12 billion).
In addition, the president of Peru’s National Society of Industries, Pedro Olaechea, said that as a result of crime the country loses 5.1 billion soles ($1.8 billion) in foreign investment.
