LIMA, PERU – AUGUST 28, 2026 Betsy Rosa Mallma Sarmiento, a mother of four and the head of the Virgen de Guadalupe community soup kitchen, was shot dead in the Nueva Rinconada area. According to police, she had just left the soup kitchen to look for her two daughters when two armed men approached her on a motorcycle and shot her several times. Mallma Sarmiento was taken to María Auxiliadora Hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.
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- Betsy Rosa Mallma Sarmiento 1
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- Betsy Rosa Mallma Sarmiento 2
Police later detained two suspects – Zait Rafael Cayo Ganto (20), nicknamed “Muecas,” and Frank Elías Perdomo Calderón (26). According to investigators, Cayo Ganto is suspected of being the direct perpetrator of the shooting. During the operation, police seized firearms and ammunition from them, and ballistic analysis showed that one of the weapons matched the shell casings found at the murder scene.
Suspects
Police are investigating the possibility that the murder was linked to extortion and a conflict between criminal groups. One line of investigation also involves a connection to Mallma Sarmiento’s former partner, known as “La Polla,” whom police link to extortion in the construction industry. However, the motive has not yet been definitively confirmed.
