The Ministry of Environment announced the arrest of 101 foreigners and four Dominicans in around a week’s time after a joint task force was deployed by state security forces in northeastern Los Haitises National Park. The operation was launched on Friday, 12 May 2023 to combat ecological crimes in the protected area. Captain René Rodríguez Alvarez is the head of the National Environmental Protection Service (Senpa) that is spearheading the operation.
“We value the responsibility with which all military and police personnel under our direct command and that of Army Colonel José Ramírez Méndez have dedicated themselves to this mission,” said Captain Rodríguez Álvarez.
The units have retained 82 animals, dismantled 19 illegal micro farms and 13 wire fences, and 35 shacks.
So far, hundreds of tools used in illegal work inside the park have been seized, including chainsaws, water tanks and solar panels.
The operation is supported by the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the National Police, the Military and Police Commission of the Ministry of Public Works (Comipol), the Joint Task Force Ciudad Tranquila (FTC-CIUTRAN), the Specialized Attorney’s Office for the Defense of the Environment and Natural Resources (Proedemaren), the National Investigations Agency (DNI), the Migration Agency (DGM) and the National Drug Control Agency (DNCD).
It also has the support of Naval Auxiliaries, the National Council for Children and Teenagers (Conani) and the Center of Emergency Operations (COE).
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Ministry of Environment
16 May 2023