The Prosecutor’s Office and the Police captured the alleged leader of the armed structure of ‘Los Ratrojos’ along with his brother and three of his subordinates, accused of perpetrating the massacre of seven people in the Totumito de Tibú village (Norte de Santander) and other crimes.
(Context: Massacre in Norte de Santander left seven people murdered)
Andrés Felipe Berrio Rúa, alias Brayan, was arrested in proceedings carried out in the rural area of Los Patios (North of Santander), along with his brother, known as ‘Piranha’, and three men who would be part of his security ring.
During the procedure, two rifles, two rifle suppliers, 50 cartridges and four cell phones were seized.
According to the investigations, alias Brayan would be the determiner of the Totumito massacre. In fact, the Prosecutor’s Office managed to establish that ‘Brayan’ through different means, allegedly attributed the massacre and, supposedly, reported the result to other members of ‘Los Rastrojos’.
(Also: Five victims leave massacre perpetrated in Arauca)
For his part, Carlos Olvany Berrio Rúa, alias Piraña, would be one of the zone leaders of the illegal structure. The other three people, known as ‘Tatuajes’, ‘José’ and ‘Curruca’ were arrested in flagrante delicto and would be part of the security ring of alias ‘Brayan’.
The attorney general Francisco Barbosa it had prioritized this type of case to advance in the prosecution of those responsible. For this reason, different investigative fronts were defined, one of them aimed at attacking criminal organizations that interfere in the Catatumbo region and the border area with Venezuela.
“More facts and fewer words. The Prosecutor’s Office acts forcefully against crime and today I want to announce a structural blow against the criminal gang ‘Los Rastrojos’,” said the prosecutor Barbosa after highlighting the work articulated with the Police and the support of the community.
And he added: “In just over a month, we delivered a fundamental result for the country (…) I do not like to announce exhaustive investigations, I present results.”
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Wide handbook
The investigations showed that Andrés Felipe Berrio Rúa, alias Brayan, completed 12 years in ‘Los Rastrojos’. Currently, he would have 50 men under arms and, as the third leader of the criminal structure, he would be the main coordinator of homicides and dismemberment in the border area.
Alias Brayan is demobilized from the defunct Self-Defense Forces Peasants of Magdalena Medio. For his part, his brother, alias Piranha, rejoined ‘Los Rastrojos’ two years ago, after being released from prison. He was head of the zone with a component of 35 people in charge of carrying out selective assassinations, and extortions against cattle farmers and rice farmers.
A prosecutor from the Special Directorate against Criminal Organizations charged ‘Brayan’ ‘with the crimes of: aggravated conspiracy for the purpose of homicide and extortion, in her capacity as leader; aggravated homicide; manufacture, trafficking and carrying of weapons, ammunition for restricted use, for the exclusive use of the Armed Forces or explosives.
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Against the indicated armed leader of ‘Los Rastrojos’, in addition to the massacre in
Totumito, is attributed five more homicides that occurred in the last two years and for which he also had a valid arrest warrant against him.
The other defendants were charged with the crimes of conspiracy to commit a crime
aggravated for the purpose of extortion and homicide, and manufacture, trafficking and carrying of weapons,
ammunition for restricted use, for the exclusive use of the Armed Forces or explosives.
Additionally, these people would be linked to hit men, kidnappings,
forced disappearances, torture, recruitment of people, drug trafficking, hydrocarbon trafficking, collection of extortion and illegal controls in corridors or trails between Colombia and Venezuela.
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– For sexual harassment, a one-year suspension of a State Council official
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