Comprehensive plan of investigative and judicial actions due to the outbreak of violence in the region of Catatumbo 

On the occasion of the outbreak of violence in the region of Catatumbo, in Norte de Santander, the Attorney General’s Office launched a week ago an action plan which coordinates the investigative, judicial and victim assistance capabilities. 

In this way, with the support of entities such as the National Police and the National Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences, a timely and effective institutional response has been given to the request made by the civilian population for justice, and actions have been taken against those responsible for the homicides, mass displacements, kidnappings, forced disappearances and other criminal conducts generated in the department of Norte de Santander and other areas of the country.

Following the parameters of the Strategic Direction of the Attorney General’s Office 2024-2028, the delegates for Territorial Security and against Organized Crime, the Special Investigation Unit (Unidad Especial de Investigación UEI) and the Technical Investigative Corps (Cuerpo Técnico de Investigación CTI) assigned joint teams to travel to the territory, to make contact with the affected communities and to start the corresponding investigative actions.

The violent actions in the region of Catatumbo include members of the ELN´s Northeastern War Front (Frente de Guerra Nororiental) and the dissident Farc’s 33rd against whom the Attorney General’s Office is conducting three main investigations: one for homicide and related crimes, another one for forced displacement and related conducts, and a third investigation for damage to leaders and signatories of the Peace Agreement.

The proceedings that were carried out during this week were led by the Sectional Office in Norte de Santander, with the support of prosecutors from the Specialized Directorate against Criminal Organizations (Dirección Especializada contra las Organizaciones Criminales DECOC), the Delegate for Territorial Security, the Specialized Directorate against Human Rights Violations and the Special Investigation Unit.

Likewise, a group of 46 public servants from CTI and the National Police were sent to that territory in order to carry out the judicial police activities related to human rights, identification and analysis of the structures that commit crimes in the region, their leaders and current arrest warrants, among other aspects.

To streamline the receipt of denunciations and the comprehensive assistance for victims, the Directorate on Users Assistance and Early Intervention (Dirección de Atención al Usuario e Intervención Temprana DAUITA) strengthened the institutional presence with 10 public servants in five customer service desks located at the so-called Estadio General Santander in Cúcuta and Coliseo in Ocaña.

Furthermore, the Special Investigation Unit has led the investigations related to murders of signatories of the Peace Agreement that took place in the municipalities of El Tarra, Convención and Teorama, and the crimes associated with social leaders in Tibú, Convención and El Tarra.

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.