Ciudad Juarez.- Theft from department stores or branches of large corporations, commonly known as “farderas”, is one of the most common crimes affecting organized commerce and which is rarely investigated, said Miguel Macías, director of the private security company Impulse.
This halo of impunity is due to the fact that these are acts that are not always reported, or else, they remain as attempted crimes and the legal representatives of the businesses desist from pursuing criminal proceedings, he said.
“In large chains like Walmart, Soriana, Coppel, the problem is that their corporate or security management is outside the city; so if the municipal police are going to arrest a person, no one from the corporate will come to impose charges so that they can proceed and classify the crime, it is very serious,” explained Macías. In many cases, when the people are discovered, the merchandise is recovered by the security personnel of the commercial establishment and that is why it remains in the degree of attempt, said the specialist in security issues. “So, it is a crime that is very recurrent and almost all the ‘show-offs’, because they are more women than men, have a way of operating. Normally they are housewives or women with families, they do not act alone, they always act two or three people, that is their modus operandi; some serve as distractions and it cannot be considered that the business really has losses because in most cases they do not manage to get the merchandise out,” he reiterated. However, it is these circumstances that allow the “farderas” to operate in an organized and systematic manner, turning this activity into their way of life.
The ‘La Manda’ group
One of these groups is identified as “La Manda,” which is from Torreón, Coahuila. Several of its members are in the Women’s Prison 2 under criminal proceedings for robbery and each of them assumed responsibility individually. At the head of this group is a woman identified as “Lupe,” the matriarch and who has been in the trade for more than 40 years, according to testimonies from members of this group that were obtained on condition of anonymity. “Lupe” has recruited her members, all women, and most of them have a long criminal record for robbery and other crimes. These women move through various cities, including Ciudad Juárez. They operate in groups and determine the date and time to enter the stores they have previously chosen and studied. They have an idea of the type of merchandise they will steal and, if everything goes well, they will distribute it democratically among all of them. If there are casualties, because they are arrested in flagrante delicto by the department store security team and subject to criminal proceedings, “La Manda” pays their legal representatives and while the legal process is underway, the family of the detainee is protected by the rest. The protection among its members is what distinguishes “La Manda”, according to testimonies.
Arrest of ‘Shakira’
Guillermina EM is one of the members of this organization who was arrested last weekend by elements of the Municipal Public Security Secretariat (SSPM); the intervention was at the request of security personnel from the Soriana store. The woman, alias “Shakira”, was brought before the Public Prosecutor’s Office for the probable commission of the crime of attempted robbery against the aforementioned store, when she was caught when she tried to steal merchandise worth 1,900 pesos, reported the SSPM. In the narrative of events, the SSPM reported that the arrest was on August 18 at 3:30 p.m. A call was received at the community telephone of the Southern District where they reported that there was a person detained in the Soriana store. The security guard introduced a woman dressed in a blouse and black tights, who crossed the checkout area with several products in a cart, so upon observing this action he asked her for the purchase receipt and she told him that she did not have it and that she had not paid anything. The guard detains the woman in the store and makes the call for her arrest, being several products with a total value of 1,900 pesos and 94 cents. Then a chain of custody was established for the perishable products, which remained in the store. After reading her rights, she is arrested and presented before the corresponding authority for the crime of robbery and/or whatever is required before the State Attorney General’s Office. This year alone, the woman has a record of three arrests in this city, although her history of robbery of businesses began in 2016 in Acuña, Coahuila. The women who make up “La Manda” leave their children in the care of their romantic partner, who does not work to dedicate himself to the care of their dependents. According to reports, the merchandise they manage to steal is distributed equitably, they take it to their homes and if the family does not require the items, they stock their own stores.
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