“Alias Zarco” was sent to prison, accused of 13 homicides, including a peace signer, and of transporting weapons for dissidents.
He was sent to prison José Ignacio Bustos Ruiz, alias Zarcoalleged leader of the FARC dissidents and identified as responsible for a wave of homicides in Tolima which left 13 people dead, including a peace signer.
According to the investigations, in addition to the homicides, the defendant would be involved in the weapons transport.
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Evidence against ‘Zarco’ and other guerrillas
The evidentiary material showed that the crimes occurred in San Antonio, southern Tolima, between 2023 and 2024, and would be related to intimidation of the civilian population for opposing the presence of the illegal group, in addition to disputes with other armed structures for the control of illicit income.
One of the events attributed is the murder of the peace signer Cenober Aguiar Mayorperpetrated on October 29, 2023 in the Diamante neighborhood of San Antonio.
Investigators indicated that Bustos Ruiz arrived at an establishment where the victim was sleeping and shot him several times. He later murdered a man he found while fleeing.
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Likewise, he would be involved in the homicide of a member of the LGBTIQ+ population, José Manuel Céspedes Tiquewhich occurred on August 7, 2023.
The coordinated work between prosecutors from the Special Investigation Unit and the Specialized Directorate against Criminal Organizations made it possible to obtain evidence that points to the possible responsibility of alias Zarco in the wave of homicides in the south of Tolima.
Likewise, it was learned that he would be one of those in charge of transport weapons to the different structures of the self-proclaimed Ismael Ruiz front and warn about the movements of the public force and social leaders.
For all of the above, the Prosecutor’s Office charged him with the crimes of homicide, conspiracy to commit a crime and manufacturing, trafficking or carrying firearmsall aggravated.
The defendant did not accept the charges and, by order of a criminal judge overseeing guarantees, he must comply security measure in prison.
Source: Integrated Information System
