Overview
- The Ministry of Justice is implementing Legislative Decree 1735 with the Judiciary, Public Ministry, Interior Ministry and Public Defense to create a cross‑agency subsystem to prioritize extortion cases, a plan reported on July 14, 2026.
- Initial operational steps include assigning 37 specialized public defenders to La Libertad and preparing a nonstop telephone line to give victims remote legal assistance and in‑person accompaniment when they file complaints.
- Reported extortion complaints have surged from 4,670 in 2021 to nearly 29,000 today while annual convictions remain around 400, exposing a large gap between reports and successful prosecutions.
- Officials say only about two in 10 victims formally report extortion because of fear of reprisals and deep distrust in the justice system, which currently schedules some hearings into 2028 and 2029 and worsens the backlog.
- The subsystem will have each agency operate from its own offices rather than shared flagrancy units and faces key risks without new funding for police support and sustained resources from the next administration.