The Office of the Attorney General of the Nation proved that people involved in the case formed an illegal group to rob residences, commercial premises and business premises among others. The crimes were committed in different parts of the country.
The former Head of Staff Security of the Branch Office in Huila, Héctor Engelberth Rodríguez Salazar; the former investigator of the Technical Investigative Corps-CTI of the Campoalegre unit, Héctor Merardo Ramos Lozano, and the former police officer Jeison Esteven Acosta Ibarra, were sentenced to more than 7 years in prison. Wilfredo Antonio Cruz Triana was also found responsible.
The decision was made after the Office of the Attorney General demonstrated that these three men were members of the criminal organization ‘Los Departamentales’, that committed at least 10 thefts under different modalities in different parts of the country.
After one year of investigations, more than 8,000 hours of phone calls recordings showed the way the defendants participated in the criminal organization.
‘The Departmentals’ were charged with robbery offenses in six departments of the country, and it is estimated that the amount of the crime exceeded COP 140’000,000 represented in jewelry, merchandise, items of value and cash. These illegal actions were allegedly committed between 2018 and 2019.
The areas affected by this organization were: Neiva, Timaná, Gigante, Garzón, Tarqui and Pital (Huila). Likewise, the departments of Caquetá in the cities of Florencia and San Vicente del Caguán; Ibague (Tolima); Cali (Valle del Cauca); Bogotá and Girardot (Cundinamarca), Santa Marta (Magdalena) and Maicao (La Guajira).