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Police in Colombia have arrested the alleged main suspect in the murder of 13 kidnapped workers at a gold mine in neighbouring Peru.<\/p>\n
Miguel Antonio Rodr\u00edguez D\u00edaz, whose alias is “Cuchillo” (knife), was arrested in the city of Medellin in a joint operation between the two countries and Interpol, according to Peru’s interior ministry and Colombian police.<\/p>\n
The bodies of the miners were recovered on 4 May from a tunnel at a mine in the Pataz district of Peru.<\/p>\n
A lawyer for Mr Diaz has denied his involvement in the killings.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Peru is one of the largest gold producers in Latin America and has seen a surge in violence from illegal miners and organised criminal gangs. <\/p>\n
The 13 men killed in Pataz had been sent to confront a group which had attacked and occupied the mine but were ambushed and seized as they were trying to regain control of it, Peruvian authorities said.<\/p>\n
Mr Diaz is suspected of allegedly ordering the storming of the mine’s entrance, with the aim of stealing gold extracted by miners, Peru’s interior ministry said in a statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n He is accused of “organised crime, aggravated kidnapping and aggravated homicide”, it added.<\/p>\n A video posted by authorities showed him being detained by armed police in a busy downtown area of Medellin.<\/p>\n Colombian police chief Carlos Triana said Mr Diaz was located with the support of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and was subject to an Interpol red notice.<\/p>\n Peru’s interior ministry <\/b>said they expected Mr Diaz to be extradited to Peru in the coming days.<\/p>\n La Poderosa, which owns the mine where the murders took place, previously said 39 people with links to the company have been killed by criminal gangs in Pataz in total.<\/p>\n This most recent attack prompted Peru’s President Dina Boluarte to impose a night-time curfew in Pataz and to suspend mining activities for a month. Extra police and soldiers were also sent to the region. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n