Police from a Peruvian team, one of whom dressed up as Santa Claus to remain “undetected”, conducted an operation against a gang of drug traffickers in a city north of Lima, authorities in the South American state announced on Saturday. AFP reports.

Peruvian agents managed to catch two men selling cocaine and marijuana in a house in Huaral, about 70 kilometers from the Peruvian capital, according to images and official reports published on Saturday, Agerpres reported.

“A member of the police team from Terna disguised himself as Santa Claus to go unnoticed in this dangerous area,” Colonel Walter Palomino, coordinator of the green unit of the Peruvian National Police, told the media.

“This strategy has been successful,” he added.

A policeman in a traditional Santa Claus costume broke down the door of the house and detained one of the suspects.

During the operation, two men were arrested and hundreds of packages of cocaine and marijuana were confiscated, the total value of which has not yet been determined by the authorities.

One of the detainees was presented to the media under the pseudonym “Grinch”, the name of a popular fictional character from an American cartoon.

For some time now, the Peruvian police have regularly pursued suspected criminals, resorting to disguises and carrying out operations that they launch on special dates.

So, on October 31, a similar operation was conducted on the occasion of Halloween, also against drug dealers.

Drug trafficking is one of the most developed crimes in Peru in recent years.