A 33-year-old Cuban citizen was arrested in Cancun, Quintana Roo, accused of alleged drug dealing and also identified in connection with a series of thefts targeting businesses, passersby, and vehicles at various locations throughout the city.
The detainee was identified as Carlos Alejandro N, alias "El Negro," who was arrested on Monday in the vicinity of Boulevard Kukulcán, one of the main tourist corridors in Cancún, according to the Attorney General's Office of Quintana Roo and reported by local media such as Diario Cambio 22.
The operation was carried out by agents of the Investigation Police in coordination with members of the National Defense, the National Guard, and the Municipal Police of Benito Juárez.
During the review, authorities confiscated 34 bags containing green plant material resembling marijuana and another 17 bags with a substance similar to crystal, allegedly methamphetamine.
According to preliminary investigations by the Prosecutor's Office, the Cuban was engaged in independent drug dealing and, so far, no links to an organized criminal group have been attributed to him.
However, the accusations against "El Negro" are not limited to the alleged sale of drugs.
Authorities are investigating him for several robberies committed against establishments belonging to commercial chains. According to the Prosecutor's Office, the suspect used stones to break the access doors and, once inside, threatened employees with a knife to seize merchandise and cash.
It would also be associated with violent assaults on pedestrians using sharp weapons, as well as with "window smashing" incidents and thefts of belongings from parked vehicles.
Residents had reported burglaries since May
Suspicions about their possible involvement in other criminal acts extend to Supermanzana 26 in Cancun, where residents had been reporting vehicle thefts for months.
The Facebook page «Cancún al Minuto Sin Censura» claimed that residents of the area had reported these incidents since May and shared images from a surveillance camera showing a man who, according to the post, has physical characteristics similar to those of the detainee as he enters a car.
"Members of the Peace Committee of this Superblock reached out to the press to report the recurring thefts of their vehicles, with no response from the authorities," the page noted.
Following his arrest, a control judge decided to link Carlos Alejandro N to the proceedings and impose justified preventive detention while the investigations progress.
Several Cubans arrested for drug dealing in Quintana Roo
The arrest adds to several recent cases of Cuban citizens detained in Quintana Roo for alleged drug-related offenses.
In early August, three Cubans were arrested at Mercado 28 in Cancun during an operation in which authorities detected an alleged exchange of illicit substances.
In June, four more Cuban citizens were charged for selling marijuana through Facebook in the Puerto Cancún Boulevard area.
That same month, four Cuban citizens were detained at kilometer 1.5 of Boulevard Kukulcán, where authorities seized 194 doses of suspected marijuana and 16 doses of a substance with characteristics similar to crystal, while seven Cubans were arrested in Holbox in possession of a shipment that, according to authorities, included marijuana, cocaine, crack, and ecstasy.
The security forces of Quintana Roo have strengthened joint operations in tourist areas such as Boulevard Kukulcán in light of the presence of drug dealing and other crimes.
In the case of Carlos Alejandro N, it will be the investigations and the judicial process that determine his eventual responsibility for the crimes attributed to him by the Mexican authorities.
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