Four Venezuelan police officers have been arrested and face dismissal after being accused of looting cash from the rubble of a building that collapsed during last week's devastating twin earthquakes. The arrests occurred in the hard-hit state of La Guaira, where rescue operations continue amid growing public anger at authorities and the government.
Local people, volunteers, and national and international rescue teams are still searching for survivors after the back-to-back quakes, which have killed almost 2,000 people, injured more than 10,000, and left tens of thousands missing. Hopes of finding more survivors are dwindling, though a three-year-old boy was pulled alive from rubble in La Guaira on Tuesday.
Police Looting Allegations
Videos on social media showed angry people trying to stop members of the scientific, penal and criminalistic investigation service corps (CICPC) from taking a safe full of dollars from a ruined building in La Guaira. In a statement, the CICPC said four officers had been arrested and relieved of their duties, and disciplinary action for their “immediate dismissal” had begun.
“In light of the recent events in the areas affected by the earthquakes in La Guaira state, it was confirmed that a group of officers, deviating from their duties and taking advantage of the rescue and humanitarian aid efforts, acted improperly by appropriating valuables found among the rubble,” the statement said. “This individual conduct, reprehensible and contrary to the fundamental values of our doctrine, directly undermines the institution’s prestige and public respect.”
Volunteer Efforts and Government Response
Volunteers, many equipped with little more than shovels, ropes, and their bare hands, say they are doing everything they can to locate survivors while, they claim, some Venezuelan military and police personnel are looting, blocking aid, and co-opting donations. Hundreds of volunteers have streamed into La Guaira, the disaster's ground zero, to offer support.
“We want to do everything we can to help,” said Fabiano Nadales, 35, a volunteer from Valencia traveling with a team of about 15 medical students and amateur searchers. “Miracles happen. Some people can survive 10 days,” he said as his convoy waited in a traffic jam. Estefania Callejas, 25, a third-year medical student from Valencia, added: “It’s really tough … but we are just trying to help.”
Senior government officials have blamed misinformation for the growing civilian anger and reports of military looting and slow aid, urging the public to ignore “manipulation strategies on social networks” and rely on official information. However, volunteer rescuers see little evidence of authorities rushing to help a week after the disaster.
“You see the firefighters and [Mexican rescue team] Los Topos,” Alexander Delgado, a teacher from Aragua state, told Reuters. “But you don’t see the state, per se.” His team has spent five days shifting rubble in La Guaira, supported by local volunteers bringing water, face masks, ice, and knowledge about the eight-tower Hugo Chávez housing development, where six towers are now debris.
Lack of Heavy Equipment and Official Presence
By Tuesday, six days in, there were two international rescue teams, some local firefighters, and one truck from Venezuela’s forensic service, but heavy equipment was still lacking, said Delgado. Mijaed Díaz, a veterinarian who joined other volunteers, said more help was needed. “I would like more presence of public entities, who really are those responsible for this,” he said as he looked for body bags for four cadavers pulled from rubble. “But in the end we’re used to making do with almost nothing.”
Daniela Armas, waiting for food in an emergency shelter in La Guaira, described the situation as desperate. “They give out supplies here, but sometimes people nearly kill each other for food,” she told Agence France-Presse. “It’s like a cockfight.”
Government Restrictions and Political Context
After initially thanking civilian volunteers, the government on Friday restricted public access to La Guaira, enraging people trying to help find survivors. One government employee at a checkpoint in La Guaira told Reuters they had witnessed police and military officers commandeer aid from three trucks, bragging about what they had “scored”.
Acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez is trying to shore up power after the US snatched her predecessor, Nicolás Maduro, in January. James Story, former US ambassador to Venezuela until 2023, said: “Delcy and company have been in charge for 26 years and they only have one script. They take credit for anything positive, push blame for anything negative and try to control the narrative.”
Donald Trump has hailed the US relationship with Rodríguez, and American companies have expressed interest in Venezuelan resources. US embassy charge d’affaires John Barrett vouched for Rodriguez’s handling of the disaster, telling Univision he had “a great deal of confidence” in local authorities.
Scale of Destruction
The 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude shocks on 24 June—one of the worst earthquake disasters in Latin American history—collapsed whole residential complexes. Preliminary satellite data analysis suggests more than 58,000 buildings may have been damaged or destroyed, dwarfing official estimates. On Monday, Jorge Rodríguez, president of the National Assembly, said 855 buildings had been damaged, including 189 “total collapses”.
