The Police is attempting to get its act together after poultry farmers in the Moca-Licey area of Espaillat and Santiago province announced on Tuesday, 15 January 2019 that they were coordinating for armed service corps to patrol the chicken farms that as of late have suffered from several armed robberies, despite having security at the farms.
As reported in El Nacional, the director general of the Police, Major General Ney Bautista Almonte said that the announcement is unnecessary because the National Police is there to protect the farmers.
After the Asociación de Pequeños Productores Avícolas de Moca y Licey had announced the civilian armed groups on Tuesday, the police directed said he instructed the regional director of the Police, General Jose Acosta Castellanos to visit the poultry farm directors and coordinate new security actions to counteract the robberies.
“I spoke with Eric Rivero and we have coordinated for a meeting where I will be present to listen to the producers and touch upon issues and discuss actions to put into practice to reduce the robberies and assaults on the Moca poultry producres,” said Major General Bautista Almonte.
As reported in El Nacional, the robberies have affected the poultry and egg producers in Licey al Medio and Moca. In addition hog farms have also been affected, reported the newspaper.
Poultry producers Ambiórix Cabrera, José Marcano, Porfirio Cabrera, Miguel Marcano, Roberto Abreu and Víctor Cabrera denounced they had been victims of armed robberies at their farms.
“Given this reality of robberies and assaults in Licey al Medio, we have no choice but to take justice into our own hands,” the poultry producers had announced in a press conference on Tuesday, 15 January 2019. Those affected urged producers to go ahead with the plan to form “armed patrols” to defend themselves against the criminals. They insisted in the need for civilian armed patrols to take care of themselves, “because we do not have a government that protests us from these criminals.”
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El Nacional
17 January 2019
