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Capella cleaning house of corrupt Cancun cops

Cancun, Q.R. — More than 300 transit police officers in Cancun remain under review as both the Mayor and Chief of Police initiate a program designed to eliminate acts of extortion and abuses of authority committed by this corporation. The announcement was made by Cancun mayor Mara Lezama who issued an ultimatum to the Transit elements, warning that whomever does not pass the trust tests will be immediately dismissed from their duties.

The Secretary of Public Security (SSP) of Quintana Roo, Alberto Capella has also confirmed the purging of corrupt officers from the Policía de Tránsito de Cancún. He said one of the first tests given was anti-doping of which eight officers failed and were relieved of their duties.

The Secretario de Seguridad Pública (SSP) added that process has been ongoing since August 28, as part of the joint program called “Crusade for Honesty and Efficiency of the Traffic Police.”

The official explained that the SSP, in coordination with Cancun City Council, have some 300 elements of the Municipal Police Traffic Directorate under observation with the aim of submitting them to extraordinary tests of control and confidence.

“We are going to continue advancing. Honesty and efficiency is the priority. We have been doing it hand-in-hand with Mayor Mara Lezama. It is one of the unprecedented projects because this situation of corruption is extremely old,” Capella said.

“The only thing that has happened is that during the renewal of governments, someone else simply continues with the vicious cycle, which evidently generates damage to the image of the institutions and evidently a patrimonial damage to citizens.”

Capella revealed that an investigation is also being processed with the Quintana Roo Prosecutor’s Office on the patrimony of the officers that the institution in order to detect their possible illicit enrichment.

“We are working with the internal affairs area to see which personnel are salvageable. This is one of the strategies to restore honesty and efficiency to that Traffic Directorate, which unfortunately for many years, has been contaminated,” he stressed.

The clean up by the SSP of Quintana Roo includes investigating a corrupt network of heads of the Cancun Transit Directorate who charge fees to their own agents to patrol and place them in strategic places to extort money.

It is estimated that in the Traffic Directorate, where 300 agents and 100 administrative people work, up to 2.8 million peso a month is collected as a result of driver roadway extortion.

“We are also investing in the acquisition of body cameras so that any intervention made by traffic elements is videotaped while also socializing with citizens the fact that they can videotape the interaction they have with traffic or any other police,” Capella explained.

“I must recognize the determination and political will of the municipal government, for without that determination, it would be impossible to fix this,” he added.