Six men and two women who were captured in April 2022 as members of the ‘front line’ and who remained under house arrest after being designated ‘peace spokespersons’ in 2023, were released yesterday due to the expiration of their terms. The decision was adopted by the Tenth Court of Control of Guarantees of Neiva.
Eight young people accused of being part of the ‘front line’ group were released. These are Kevin David García Mosquera, Edwin Herrera Pimentel, Anyi Carolina Cuéllar Ospina, Pablo Fernando Vargas Lima, Cristian Andrés Reyes Cuéllar, Vanessa Sánchez Cabrera, Ignacio Sebastián Zambrano Rodríguez and Andrés Felipe Yara Vargas, who have been deprived of their liberty for more than of two years.
The judicial process
It should be remembered that those mentioned were involved in a judicial process after the social outbreak that occurred in 2021 against the Duque government. The investigation against the ‘first line’ arose with the information provided by sources who stated that members of the group dedicated themselves during the months of May and June to the disruption of the collective public transportation service, public roads, fire, illegal constraint and instigation to commit a crime.
The arrests took place on April 27, 2022, by members of the Neiva Metropolitan Police, the National Army and the CTI of the Prosecutor’s Office, who reached the Cuarto Centenario, Las Palmas, El Centro and Santa Rosa neighborhoods, to put safe haven from justice to aliases ‘Filósofo’, ‘Payaso’, ‘Mulero’, ‘Candongas’, Zambrano’, ‘Vanessa’, ‘Ranchera’ and ‘Periodista’.
The charges
During the first procedure, the prosecutor had charged them with the crimes of terrorism, kidnapping, aggravated arson, qualified and aggravated robbery, illegal possession of firearms, disruption of public transportation, obstruction of public roads and conspiracy to commit a crime.
However, the delegate of the investigating entity decided to vary the crimes, with the charges of aggravated arson, qualified and aggravated robbery, illegal possession of firearms, disturbance in public transportation, obstruction of public roads and conspiracy to commit a crime.
From prison to home
At the time, all of them were protected with a security measure in a prison center in the first instance, but the measure was revoked in October 2022 by the Fourth Criminal Circuit Judge with Guarantees Function in the second instance, and they benefited from house arrest.
‘Spokesmen for peace’
In December 2022, President Gustavo Petro announced a list of 10 young people from the ‘front line’ detained during the national strike, of which four were from the city of Neiva, who were designated as ‘spokespersons for peace’.
They were Andrés Felipe Yara Vargas, Kevin David García Mosquera, Edwin Herrera Pimentel and Cristian Andrés Reyes Cuéllar, whose release was requested in January 2023 by the Office of the High Commissioner for Peace, which was led at that time by Danilo Rueda Rodríguez.
They were denied freedom
At the hearing, the Fourth Municipal Criminal Judge of Neiva with Guarantee Functions finally denied the request to grant freedom to those linked. “The office will not agree to the requests made by the defense since they are inadmissible in light of the arguments, in light of the above, the Fourth Municipal Criminal Court with Guarantee Control Functions of the Municipality of Neiva, resolves to deny the inadmissibility of the request for freedom of citizens,” he said.
Finally free!
Yesterday, in a new hearing, the Tenth Guarantees Control Court of Neiva decided to grant them freedom because the term of 240 days of preventive detention expired without the oral trial hearing being held.
This only means that those accused today will continue to be linked to the process, but will be able to defend themselves freely.
Links
- They would be responsible for the incineration of the public service vehicle of the Autobuses company, which occurred in the vicinity of the Universidad Surcolombiana (Usco) road interchange, on May 12. Also of the incineration and theft of the Cootrasganadera service station, which occurred on May 17.
- In addition, they would be involved in the incineration of the tractor-trailer belonging to the heavy-duty transportation company Cemex and a group of people from the Expreso Bolivariano company, which occurred on June 3.
- They would be related to the theft of a revolver, an incident that occurred in the vicinity of the Santander bridge at the Neiva-Bogotá exit, on June 3.
- They would also be linked to the illegal detentions of a doctor from the Medilaser clinic and a person in the vicinity of the Santander bridge, which occurred on the same date.
- Finally, they allegedly vandalized, robbed and looted a D1 establishment on June 17. In addition, the destruction of the Neiva toll, on June 17.
