A military police brigade will officially start operating in the state of Guanajuato following today’s dedication of a new 450-million-peso (US $23.4-million) headquarters by President Enrique Peña Nieto.

First announced in late 2016, construction of the new facility started last May, financed by the three levels of government and a group of railway companies.

Located in the municipality of Irapuato, the new headquarters has been operational since February. Its contingent of 3,200 personnel are tasked with stopping train robberies and illegal pipeline tapping among other crimes, army officials said.

Both crimes, along with escalating acts of violence, have been on the rise in recent years in the Bajío region state.

The number of intentional homicides has skyrocketed 130% in the first five months of the year compared to all of 2017: there were 436 cases last year but between January and May this year the total shot up to 1,005.

Starting today, the military police will be able to respond to crime reports in any of the 46 municipalities of Guanajuato, and will be in charge of security in the state’s industrial corridor.

They will also be ready to respond to natural disasters, in accordance to the army’s disaster relief DN-III plan.

The new military facility is the creation of Commander Miguel Ángel Patiño, who implemented a similar project in Nuevo León. Operational since 2016 and also manned by 3,200 officials, the Nuevo León brigade oversees security in the state and in neighboring Coahuila, San Luis Potosí and Tamaulipas.