The human rights defender denounced that the custody staff should not have left a person with mental health problems alone.
The National Penitentiary Oversight Office has reported the death of an inmate in El Pesebre prison, in Puerto Triunfo. The fact adds to an alarming number of deaths in the establishment; 20 deaths in a period of about 24 months.
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The deceased inmate was identified as Giovanny Stiven Orrego Meza, who was serving a sentence of just over four years and had arrived at the penitentiary center in March 2025. According to the information received by the oversight office from the prison management, Orrego Meza was a psychiatric patient.
The day before his death, he was involved in a fight in courtyard 6. As a result of the fight, he was taken to the infirmary for alleged injuries. While there, later, He was found hanging from a fence with a sheet, which was apparently a suicide.
Jorge Alberto Carmona Vélez, Human Rights Defender (HR), expressed his concern about the numbers of people deprived of liberty who died in this prison for various reasons, including malnutrition. Besidesindicated that custody staff should not have left a person with mental health problems alone.
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Three US citizens were denied admission to the airport José María Córdova from Rionegro and returned to their country after a history of sexual exploitation was detected in the immigration filter.
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One of the men had an active notification as a suspected sexual offender, while the other appeared in alerts from the Angel Watch program – which identifies people investigated or convicted of sexual crimes against minors – and the third accompanied them.
The three travelers tried to enter Colombia through the Eastern Antioquia air terminal, but were intercepted by Colombian Immigration officials. After the inadmissibility, the foreigners were placed under immigration custody and were finally returned on a flight to New Yorkwithout being able to set foot on Colombian territory.
The mayor of Medellín, Federico Gutiérrez, reacted to the case on his X account, stating: “We continue working to ensure that these predators do not set foot in our city. Here we protect our boys and girls.”
Colombian Immigration authorities have explained that the majority of foreigners not admitted to this terminal are US citizens and that international reports They suggest that many arrive with intentions of sexual tourism in the area.
With these three inadmissibility, the number of people returned so far this year exceeds 50. SOnly in the month of November, the José María Córdova airport registered a total of 22 unadmitted travelers.
The authorities insist that they will continue to strengthen controls to protect Colombian children and adolescents, closing the way to those who They seek to take advantage of the country through sexual tourism.
