Guatemala City, Jan 20 (EFE).- Aldo Dupie Ochoa Mejía, known as 'Lobo' and serving an 80-year prison sentence for several murders, has become the most visible face of criminal gangs in Guatemala as the leader of 'Barrio 18'. The gang is accused of being behind the wave of violence against security forces over the weekend, which led to the declaration of a state of siege in the Central American country. Ochoa Mejía has also been one of the main protagonists in the past year's struggle between gangs and the government of President Bernardo Arévalo de León. His figure gained more prominence this weekend after the Minister of the Interior, Marco Villeda, warned that some privileges Ochoa Mejía and his subordinates had under previous administrations would not be granted. Among the benefits requested by the nearly 40-year-old inmate, who filed his complaints in August 2025, were air conditioning, a larger bed, and access to food delivery service. The inmate's complaints began after he was transferred to the high-security prison 'Renovación I' in the south of the country following his gang's massacre at a wake for members of the rival criminal structure, 'Mara Salvatrucha'. Since then, tension with the government has grown, with more riots and the bloody attack this Sunday where alleged members of 'Barrio 18' killed nine police officers in different parts of Guatemala City. 'We have to analyze and make a decision to determine his situation or how we are going to proceed. For now, he is in Renovación I and will remain there until we make a decision,' Villeda emphasized over the weekend. Deputies from the ruling party, Semilla Movement, have publicly denounced Ochoa Mejía's political ties. Specifically, they have pointed out his relationship with María Marta Castañeda Torres, the niece of former First Lady and presidential candidate Sandra Torres Casanova (from the National Unity of Hope party, UNE), who lost the 2023 elections to the current president. Castañeda Torres is under arrest and linked to a criminal process for several cases against her, and according to some Semilla deputies, there is a connection due to common interests between Torres Casanova, her niece, and the former candidate's daughter, Deputy Nadia de León. Ochoa Mejía has been imprisoned for nearly two decades for homicide, with sentences of at least 80 years in prison. However, according to local media, his leadership from prison allowed him to extort up to $10,000 weekly, or at least that was the case until he was transferred to 'Renovación I'. Born in the department (province) of Jalapa in the east of the country, he became involved in crime in his adolescence after living in Zone 18 of Guatemala City, specifically in a sector considered a red zone called 'El Limón'. Little is known about his life beyond his connection to several murders that earned him nearly 1,600 years in sentences according to authorities, although Guatemalan law does not provide for them to be added up. 'Lobo's' imprisonment began more than 20 years ago, in 2003, and since then he has risen through the ranks of the gang, and according to local media, became the leader of Barrio 18 between 2014 and 2017.
