Chile call to cut violent crime

Colsa (the Logistics Association for San Antonio) has thrown its weight behind other Chilean agencies and companies involved in security – both private and public – to face up to the increasing “multi-million dollar thefts” from port areas in San Antonio.

The extra push for co- operation comes in the wake of a massive heist on January 11 which saw a well-organised criminal gang steal 13 containers stuffed with copper, valued at Pesos3,600M (US$4.414 million), belonging to state-owned Codelco. According to San Antonio police, 10 heavily armed men entered the compound during the early hours, threatening staff before driving off with the containers.

This heist follows a series of attacks on container train and railroad facilities in northern Chile last October which forced the Chilean government to tighten security on all trains carrying copper.

“Companies associated with Colsa request support from the national agencies in charge of security to face the increasingly frequent theft of millions of dollars of goods, which is seriously affecting the extra-port area of San Antonio,” Colsa emphasised in a statement. “It is beyond the resources of individual companies to deal with the sophisticated nature of these attacks so we are requesting a united effort from all parties.”

Three long-standing logistics companies, SAAM Logistics, Ultramar San Antonio and Agunsa Extraportuarios SA, also threw their weight behind moves to present a united front to fight the frequent heists.

“This type of situation exposes people who carry out their daily, operational tasks and safeguard our logistics centres, and these violent robberies do tremendous damage…” underlined Jorge Guajardo, Manager, Ultramar.