Police Officer Disguised as Santa Visits High-Crime Area, Thought to Be Doing Good Deeds

On Halloween, people mainly disguise as movie characters for crackdowns
Undercover operations for drug enforcement common in Latin American countries

In Peru, one of the world's major cocaine-producing countries alongside Colombia, the police dressed up as Santa Claus to infiltrate high-crime areas and arrest drug offenders during Christmas.

On the 25th (local time), Peru's RPP News and AFP reported, "On the 23rd, police officers disguised as Santa Claus with red clothes and white beards raided a house in the Huaral area, about 70 km north of the capital Lima, together with their colleagues." The Peruvian police use such disguises every Christmas to avoid suspicion from drug cartel members and to prevent local residents from discovering their operations.

This year, a police officer dressed as Santa secured the entrance by breaking the front door of a house with a large hammer to arrest drug suspects, and other officers entered to arrest two men inside. Bags containing a white powder suspected to be cocaine were also seized at the scene.
[Photo by KBS News]

This year, a police officer dressed as Santa secured entry by smashing the front door of a house with a large hammer to arrest drug offenders, while other officers entered and detained two men inside. Bags containing white powder, presumed to be cocaine, were also seized at the scene. This is not the first time the Peruvian police have conducted drug crackdowns using such unusual methods.

In October this year, during Halloween, police disguised as villains from horror movies naturally infiltrated a village Halloween festival and arrested a group of drug dealers. On October 31 last year, police dressed as protagonists from the movie Avengers secured the arrest of drug trafficking organization members, attracting attention. On Christmas Eve in 2020, police officers dressed as Santa and elves arrested four drug offenders.

Peruvian police use this disguise operation every Christmas because Santa-related costumes become common, allowing them to avoid suspicion from drug cartel members and prevent the neighborhood residents from discovering their operation.
[Photo by KBS News]

Walter Palomino, the officer in charge of this operation, said, "I disguised myself as Santa to avoid standing out in this dangerous neighborhood," adding, "The strategy was successful." He also likened the drug cartel to Rudolph, saying, "Christmas has come to the evil reindeer."

Meanwhile, AFP explained that not only in Peru but also in other South American countries, police often disguise themselves on special occasions to carry out drug crackdown operations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.