Latest news with #Callao
Japan Times
2 days ago
- Japan Times
Smuggled mercury shows extent of illegal Amazon gold mining
The seizure of one of the largest known mercury shipments in history, moving from mines in Mexico to illegal Amazon gold mining zones, exposes the wide use of the toxic metal in the rain forest, according to authorities. Peru's customs agency, SUNAT, found 4 metric tons of illegal mercury in Lima's port district of Callao, according to a report by the nonprofit Environmental Investigations Agency (EIA). "This SUNAT intervention has prevented this chemical from having a serious impact on people's health and the environment, as can be seen in several areas of the country devastated by the illegal use of mercury and illicit activities," SUNAT said in a statement. The vast transnational smuggling operation trafficked some 200 tons of elemental mercury over more than six years, an amount that would have contributed to the production of at least $8 billion worth of illegal gold, according to the EIA, which worked alongside SUNAT to uncover the network. "The toxic flow of mercury to the illegal gold mines in the Amazon has been presented and accepted as inevitable for too many years," said Alexander von Bismarck, Executive Director at EIA U.S. Brazilian Environmental Agency (IBAMA) agents participate in a Brazilian government enforcement operation to combat illegal gold mining in the Amazon rainforest on Munduruku Indigenous land, in the municipality of Jacareacanga, Para state, Brazil, on Nov. 12, 2024. | REUTERS "It is time to challenge this status quo that affects Amazonian communities and benefits organized criminals," he said. The scheme spanned at least four countries — Mexico, the country of origin, Peru, the destination for three-quarters of the mercury, Colombia and Bolivia — between April 2019 and June 2025. All four are signatories of the Minamata Convention on Mercury to protect human health by reducing and ultimately eliminating mercury use, and the undeclared shipments were in direct violation of the convention. Record gold prices have encouraged a flourishing illegal mining trade that damages local nature and biodiversity and is raising significant health concerns. With the price of gold surpassing $3,000 per ounce, mercury, which is used to extract the gold in illegal mines in the Amazon, is worth four times as much. A highly dangerous neurotoxin, mercury is one of the top 10 chemicals of major public health concern, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). It enters the food chain, bioaccumulates and causes developmental delays in children, cognitive impairment and multiple other serious health problems for Amazonian communities. "To extract gold, rivers and streams are polluted, and territories are plundered," said Julio Cusurichi, an Indigenous leader and Goldman Environmental Prize winner, in Madre de Dios, the Peruvian Amazon region most heavily impacted by illegal gold mining. "Mercury pollution even affects fish, which is the daily diet of our Indigenous communities. Now the contamination is reaching all of us who live in the Madre de Dios region, Indigenous or not," he said. Mercury air pollution in parts of Madre de Dios is more than 5.5 times higher than the WHO's safety levels. The investigation uncovered a network involving organized crime groups allegedly centered around a mercury trader identified as Juan José Zamorano Davila, based in Querétaro state, Mexico, according to the EIA and Peruvian authorities. Zamorano allegedly oversaw procurement, concealment, export logistics and financial structuring of the shipments, according to the EIA. A law enforcement agent holds a bottle of mercury used in gold panning during an operation against illegal gold mining at the Urupadi National Forest Park in the Amazon rainforest, in the municipality of Maues, Amazonas state, Brazil, in 2023. | REUTERS The route begins in Querétaro, where a few active mercury mines, some located within the Sierra Gorda UNESCO Biosphere Reserve that is considered a unique ecosystem of cultural significance, produce dozens of tonnes of mercury each year to feed gold mining demand in the Amazon. Evidence collected by EIA indicated some of the mines are controlled by the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of Mexico most powerful illegal drug networks. In May, sources from the Querétaro mines told investigators that "mercury fever" has hit the region this year, triggered by record prices of about $330 per kilogram offered by mercury traffickers as a consequence of skyrocketing gold prices. Once smuggled into South America from the Mexican port of Manzanillo, the mercury was moved through ports and companies with alleged ties to organized crime and resold in illegal gold mining zones, including territories controlled by armed criminal groups like the Clan de Golfo (AGC) and the ELN in Colombia. The mercury found in the port of Callao was hidden in sacks of gravel and falsely declared as crushed stone or decorative rocks to bypass customs. Invoices for the shipments were inflated and misclassified to disguise their contents. Each 20-ton container was declared at $11,000 (about 20 times higher than legitimate gravel prices) despite actually containing mercury worth up to $2 million. The container intercepted in Peru tested positive for mercury vapor levels 480 times above safety thresholds. The shipment was marked as destined for Bolivia, passed through the port of Callao and, the investigation showed, was diverted through Peru's southern city of Arequipa, a distribution hub for destinations such as Madre de Dios. Similar shipments were traced to Colombia as well as Bolivia, often routed through the U.S. port of Houston, creating a potential jurisdiction issue in the United States. The routes underscore the global nature of the trafficking operation and also bring attention to limited inspection in transshipment scenarios, the report said.
Washington Post
6 days ago
- Washington Post
Peru seizes record 4-ton mercury shipment in fight against illegal gold mining
BOGOTA, Colombia — Peruvian customs officials have seized a record-breaking shipment of illegal mercury , exposing a cross-border smuggling network that is fueling one of the Amazon's most destructive criminal economies: illicit gold mining. The 4-ton haul — the largest mercury seizure ever made in an Amazon country and one of the world's largest — was discovered in June at the port of Callao, hidden inside gravel-filled bags on a cargo ship bound for Bolivia. Though labeled as crushed stone, the shipment was flagged by customs agents based on international intelligence sharing.
Daily Mail
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Outrageous moment widow TWERKS against her late husband's open coffin during his funeral
Funerals are traditionally known as places of sorrow and solemn reflections. But one in Peru took a jaw-dropping turn when a widow was caught on camera twerking against a life-sized cut-out of her late husband leaning against his open coffin. Dressed in all black, the woman was seen gyrating her behind on the cardboard tribute as funeral guests clapped, whooped and cheered her on. The gathering turned into a full-on concert as reggaeton singer, El Cangri del Callao, a self-described 'wake entertainer', graced the occasion with party hits. At one point, the performer even encouraged other guests to stomp the dancefloor and shake off their sorrow. The bizarre send-off, which took place on July 6, was all caught on camera. El Cangri later posted the clip on Instagram, where it racked up 4.3 million views and nearly 8,000 comments. Social media hilariously chimed in with one comment saying: 'Hi bro, I'm going to die on 23 July. Are you available?' Another added: 'They are very young, but in my time we cried at funerals.' A third joked, 'Widow finds five new loves… at the wake.' Others weren't so impressed. One commentator fumed: 'We can see how that stupid music makes people stupid.' But not everyone was clutching their pearls. Another social media user wrote: 'I've performed funerals and wakes, but always from a very different tone to what this video shows. 'I've never had the opportunity to capture a farewell from such a luminous, vivid perspective.'
Yahoo
17-06-2025
- Yahoo
Churchgoers Flee as Powerful Earthquake Interrupts Mass in Peru
One person is dead and dozens of others are injured after an earthquake hit Peru over the weekend Footage shows churchgoers in Lima as the 5.6 magnitude earthquake paused mass A 36-year-old Lima man died in the earthquake after a wall from a construction site fell on himOne person is dead and dozens of others are injured after a 5.6 magnitude earthquake hit near Lima, Peru, over the weekend. The deadly quake occurred around 11:35 a.m. local time on Sunday, June 15, in coastal waters near Lima and was also felt in nearby Callao, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported. Footage obtained by CTV News shows churchgoers in Lima running as the quake disturbed a mass. The earthquake killed a 36-year-old Lima man who had been standing by his car waiting for a passenger when a wall from a construction site fell on him, a police colonel told RPP radio, per the Associated Press. Actualización | Aumenta la cifra de heridos a 43, tras sismo de magnitud 6.1 en el Callao, según el @Minsa_Peru; 25 de ellos fueron dados de alta y 18 permanecen hospitalizados. El GORE Callao entregó Bienes de Ayuda Humanitaria a la MD de Mi Perú para los damnificados. (1/2) — COEN - INDECI (@COENPeru) June 16, 2025 Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. The Peruvian National Emergency Operations Center, which said the earthquake was a 6.1 magnitude, announced the number of injured rose to 43 on Monday, June 16, citing the Health Ministry in a post on X. Twenty-five people have been discharged and 18 remain hospitalized, according to an English translation of the message. The COES Culture Department reported damage to a wall of the Huaca Pucllana Site Museum, according to the Emergency Operations Center. Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
16-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Terrified dogs tried to warn family something terrible was about to happen....moments later, it did
Two dogs flew into a mysterious frenzy and trying to warn their owners about an unseen before a magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck their home. The viral footage showed the family enjoying a Father's Day lunch at their home in Peru when the canines began to bark and rushed to the home's door entrance. A woman stood from her seat at the table and followed the dogs to the door, perhaps thinking that a visitor was knocking. One of the dogs continued to the bark as the she stood by the door and then opened it. A male at the table could be seen urging everyone to remain calm before they all walked towards the exit. Suddenly the home began to shake violently for about four seconds as the earthquake arrived. The tremor rattled Lima, the capital, and the port city of Callao, Peruvian authorities said. Its epicenter was located 18.6 miles southwest of Callao, according to the Geophysical Institute of Peru. The institute's chief, Hernando Taveras, told America Noticias in a May 2023 interview that dogs were capable to detecting earthquakes before their human companions. 'Before the earthquake releases its energy, the rocks [underground] begin to fracture and generate a high-frequency noise that the human ear cannot perceive, but dogs can,' he explained. 'Some dogs get very nervous, are restless, bark to get attention, go up and down íhe stairs,' said local veterinarian Tania Ramirez. 'But other dogs have a more serene personality and, although they feel the vibrations, they do not show any concern. Additional video footage captured a landslide near a road and a beach while parishioners fled the Lima Cathedral during the middle of a mass. The tremor killed Jhonatan Ventura, 36, after a set of bricks fell from the exterior wall of a fourth floor that was being added to a residence in the Lima district of Independencia. The Health Ministry said that earthquake injured 35 people. As of Monday, 25 victims remained hospitalized across several hospitals in Lima. It also reported damages to 14 medical facilities and 13 schools. The Geophysical Institute of Peru has detected 398 earthquakes in 2025, including 29 during June. Sunday's earthquake comes 55 years after the worst tremor in the history of Peru rattled the city of Yungay. The May 31, 1979, tremor killed at least 70,000 people and injured more than 140,000.
