Not only must it face fuel theft from pipelines in Guanajuato, the state oil company Pemex is now having to deal with theft on another front: tanker trucks on the state’s highways.

The company has requested official protection from Federal Police to provide escort vehicles.

The newspaper Milenio reported that there have been at least two instances of tanker truck theft in the last two months. Only one of the vehicles has been recovered.

Sources within the company told Milenio that the two cases had triggered the request for protection after formal complaints were filed before the federal Attorney General’s office.

The most dangerous highways are those between Celaya and Acámbaro and between Querétaro state and San Luis de la Paz.

The Federal Police have detected not only fuel theft on those routes, but also the illegal transportation of small amounts of gasoline and diesel in private vehicles and taxis.

The protection requested calls for surveillance of the tanker trucks from the moment they leave a Pemex facility until they reach their destination.

Source: Milenio (sp)