Assaults on major highway prompts more patrols

Santo Domingo.- The ongoing robberies on the Duarte highway prompted the U.S. Embassy’s warning to its citizens several weeks ago against driving on that road at night.

In recent months attacks the Duarte highway, which links the capital and the north region, have become an ordeal for the many truck drivers and motorists who defy the darkness and risk highway robberies.

In July a truck of the company Corporacion Minera Dominicana loaded with 2,459 kilos of gold and silver ore valued at US$1.3 million was highjacked by several people still on the loose, in Villa Altagracia, 43 kilometers north of the capital.

The assault and other incidents concern drivers and prompted heightened security by the authorities.

Businesses along both sides of the highway have also fallen prey to the highway robbers, forcing many to close earlier than usual.

In that regard, Preventive Police General Neivis Perez said the roads are safe after teams and a patrols were assigned to what’s considered the most dangerous span, La Cumbre-Villa Altagracia-Bonao.