Venezuela’s murderous ‘Crazy Boys’ gang who make their living by kidnapping in one of the world’s most violent cities – Caracas – have given an astonishing interview shedding light on the reality of life inside the failing socialist state. The gangsters make money by kidnapping ordinary citizens off the streets and demanding ransoms that can be as little as a car or fancy watch, but such meagre items still represent a tidy profit in the impoverished nation. Venezuela has been ruled by Russian-backed Nicolás Maduro for five years, and the country was at the centre of a stand off between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump this year as the White House tried to support Juan Guadio who claimed to have won an election. However Maduro clung to power and socialist rule continues in the nation amid soaring hyper inflation that is making many of Caracas’ hardened criminals consider leaving the country. Feared Caracas street gangster El Negrito, 24, sleeps with a silver revolver under his pillow and says he’s lost track of his murder count. El Negrito says the hyperinflation has disrupted his bloody track record and firing his gun has become an expensive luxury. Ten bolivars – now worth just $1 – used to get you a gun, now that doesn’t even get you a pack of cigarettes.
‘If you empty your clip, you’re shooting off $15,’ said El Negrito, speaking to The Associated Press on the condition he be identified only by his street name and photographed wearing a hoodie and face mask to avoid attracting unwelcome attention. ‘You lose your pistol or the police take it and you’re throwing away $800.’ He leads for-hire hoodlums called the Crazy Boys, a band that forms part of an intricate criminal network in Petare, one of Latin America’s largest and most feared slums. The gangster, who agreed to an interview with two associates at their hillside hideout in Caracas, said his group now carries out roughly five kidnappings a year, down considerably from years past. Such express abductions are big business. Typically, a victim is nabbed and held hostage for up to 48 hours while loved ones scramble to gather as much cash as they can find, with kidnappers focused on speed and a quick return rather than on the size of the payout. El Negrito said the ransom they set depends on what a victim’s car costs, and a deal can turn deadly if demands aren’t met.
But like many of his associates, he has considered leaving the trade in Venezuela and emigrating. He said some people have quit the world of crime and sought more honest work abroad, fearing stiff penalties in other countries where laws are more enforced. While explaining that he struggles to support his wife and young daughter, El Negrito passed his silver pistol between his hands. A Bible lay open to Proverbs on a dresser as a breeze turned the pages. Another Crazy Boy called Dog, said, ‘A pistol used to cost one of these bills,’ crumpling up a 10 bolivar ($1) note that can no longer be used to buy a single cigarette. ‘Now, this is nothing.’ Bullets are expensive at $1 each and with less cash circulating on the street, he says robberies just don’t pay like they used to. Officials of Maduro’s socialist administration stopped publishing statistics charting crime trends long ago.