Peru’s Illegal Gold Mining Crisis Intensifies Amid Latest Wave of Violence

As of mid-May 2025, Peru is confronting one of its most serious internal crises in recent memory, as illegal gold mining reaches new levels of violence and environmental devastation. The situation intensified on May 4, when 13 security workers from the La Poderosa gold mine in the northern province of Pataz were found murdered after being kidnapped by armed groups linked to illegal mining syndicates. This brutal event, part of a disturbing pattern of similar attacks in recent years, has triggered widespread national outrage and drawn international attention to the country’s struggle with criminal networks entrenched in its mining regions.