The Pulpos, also known as the Pulpos de Trujillo, are a Peruvian transnational gang dedicated to extortion, kidnapping and murder. The group originated in the 1990s and in recent years has expanded its operations from La Libertad province, Peru, to other countries in the region, including Chile.
Their activities are marked by the use of extreme violence against entrepreneurs and traders – mainly of Peruvian origin – in the territories where they operate.
History
The Pulpos were founded in the 1990s by brothers Miller, Nilton, Eddy and Jhon Cruz Arce in the city of Trujillo, province of La Libertad, Peru. The group was based in El Porvenir, a neighborhood with high levels of poverty.
Initially, the gang committed small-scale robberies under Miller's leadership until he was arrested in 1995 for assault. Although he was released a year later, Miller returned to prison in 2002 after committing three murders, including that of a state police officer.
The group then comes under the command of Jhon, alias “Jhon Pulpo”. It focused its operations on collecting “vacunas” – a form of extortion in which victims make regular payments under threat of violence – and targeted the assassinations of those who refused to pay.
By the early 2010s, authorities considered the gang largely dismantled after Jhon Pulpo was sentenced to 25 years in prison for homicide in 2008. His brother Nilton was arrested for sexual assault in 2011. The only brother still free, Eddy, moved to Chile in 2010.
But in 2014, Jhon's son, Jhonsson Smit Cruz Torres, alias “Jhonsson Pulpo”, took command of the organization at the age of 17, inaugurating a new phase of expansion in Peru marked by particularly violent extortion and kidnapping operations targeting traders, schoolsand business leaders from several sectors, such as the transportation and mining industries.
In 2021, Chilean police received the first complaints against the Pulpos in the capital Santiago. Eddy allegedly built a network of informants in municipalities such as Recoleta and obtained public contracts through a waste collection cooperative called Jatún Newén.
In Chile, the group reportedly demanded monthly payments of businesses run by Peruvian migrants ranging from $312 to $2,120 in exchange for “protection.” Failure to pay can result in violent retaliation, including dynamite attacks on businesses, kidnappings or murder.
Since then, the group has expanded into new territories.
In September 2025, the Ecuadorian National Police arrested 18 members of the Pulpos in a mining area in Zamora Chinchipe province. They were accused of extorting minors in the region and murdering several individuals linked to the Ecuadorian gang. the Choneros.
Direction
Jhonsson Pulpo is the current leader of the Pulpos and one of Peru's most wanted criminals after being sentenced to life in prison for the 2020 murder of a businesswoman in Trujillo. His whereabouts are unknown, and in the past he has faked his own death to escape justice.
Other key figures close to Jhonsson Pulpo include Willan Gianmarco Rosado, aka “El Wara,” and Luis Alberto Daga Lozano, aka “Pacolo,” accused of leading a dissident faction known as Pulpos Nueva Generación in Chile. Both were discontinued in 2023 and 2024 respectively.
Former Pulpos leader and father of Jhonsson, Jhon Pulpo, reportedly continued his criminal activities from prison until his release in 2025, after serving 17 years of his sentence.
Geography
The Cruz Arce brothers founded the Pulpos in the province of La Libertad, Peru. Over time, they expanded their operations to other territories and countries, including the Santiago metropolitan region in Chile, as well as the Zamora Chinchipe province in Ecuador.
Authorities have also reported the presence of Pulpos members in other countries such as Argentina. In September 2025, some Argentine media linked those responsible for a triple femicide in Buenos Aires to the Pulpos, but so far there is no indication that the group has established a presence in that country.
Allies and enemies
The Pulpos have confronted with other local and transnational gangs – including Train from Aragua and the Choneros – in the areas where they operate.
In the city of Trujillo, some corrupt police officers allegedly collaborated with the organization.
Outlook
Over the past few decades, the Pulpos have evolved from a small-scale gang of thieves to a transnational organization focused on one of the region's most lucrative criminal economies: extortion. The group has shown itself capable of adapting to police pressure and using violence to dominate rival gangs in the territories it controls.
Its presence in several countries reflects an expansionist dynamic that opportunistically exploits migratory flows from Peru and the legal and illegal economies within its reach – including the gold mining sector, which has seen a boom in recent years. For these reasons, the group should continue to expand into new territories.
