Among those arrested people is Juan Carlos Acevedo, alleged leader of this illegal organization.
The Attorney General’s Office collected evidence against five alleged members of the group involved in the commission of minor crimes known as ‘Los de Jota’, responsible for several homicides in Los Patios, El Zulia and Cúcuta (Norte de Santander).
They are Carlos Acevedo Hernández, alias Jota; José Gregorio Peñaranda Vera, alias Goyo; Eduver Villamizar Galvis, brothers Eduver and Jairo Rodríguez Flórez, alias Piloto; and Andrey Osneider Rondón Ramírez.
Four of the defendants were arrested in 13 home searches carried out in Cúcuta and El Zulia (Norte de Santander); and 1 in flagrante delicto. These actions were carried out by CTI and National Police.
‘Jota’ would be in charge of coordinating the other members of the criminal network to carry out extortions against merchants in Cúcuta and its metropolitan area.
The defendants were allegedly involved in at least four homicides between November 2023 and last March 31; as well as in the attempted murder of three people on February 20, in El Zulia.
Rondón Ramírez was charged with trafficking, manufacturing or possession of drugs and was ordered to serve house arrest. The other defendants were charged, according to their individual responsibilities, with aggravated homicide, attempted and aggravated homicide, conspiracy to commit a crime, extortion and aggravated manufacturing, trafficking and possession of firearms or ammunition. They did not plead guilty to the charges. The judge imposed deprivation of liberty.
The Office of the Attorney General makes this information public for reasons of general interest.
The information contained in this press release corresponds to the narration of the objective news provided by the officials in charge of carrying out criminal investigations within the Office of the Attorney General. By the time this communication is disclosed, the legal status of the people mentioned is still pending to be resolved by the competent judicial authority, always under the presumption of innocence contemplated by Article 29 of the Political Constitution and Article 7 of Law 906 of 2004