2024-01-19 21:13:43
On this Friday afternoon, a judge issued a conviction against Wilson Arévalo Hernández, alias Chaco or El Quesero, for his participation in the terrorist attack on the General Santander School of the National Police.
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That cadet center was the epicenter on January 17, 2019 of a car bomb that killed 22 people, and left 54 victims, an attack that the ELN ordered to carry out.
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“The meaning of the ruling will be condemnatory,” the judge anticipated after evaluating the evidence provided by the Attorney General’s Office in the oral trial stage against ‘Chaco’, who is detained in La Picota prison.
(You can read: They condemn alias Chaco, one of those accused of the attack on the cadet school)
The crimes for which the togada will have to dictate the amount of the penalty are conspiracy to commit a crime, in conjunction with aggravated terrorism and aggravated homicide.
For the office, the testimonies of several people were key to unraveling this process in which several relatives of those in uniform are accredited as victims. Some of the statements heard at the trial indicate that ‘Chaco’ was part of the ELN, and that he was also known as the alias El Quesero.
According to the judge, in the material that was evaluated it was documented that this man was a front man for the illegal group and even became an explosives expert. “The defendant’s link with the ELN becomes even stronger due to the contact he had with the driver of the vehicle, Aldemar Rodríguez, known as alias El Mocho,” the judge added.
Precisely, this week a tribute was paid to the victims in General Santander, which was attended by the Minister of Defense, Iván Velásquez, and General William René Salamanca.
The details of the conviction
According to the file, the vehicle in which the explosives were brought to the School was in the name of Arévalo, and that in fact he was the one who transported the car from Arauca to Bogotá in 2018, to later deliver it to Aldemar Rodríguez.
However, for the judge “the office does not explain how it sold the vehicle while maintaining its possession.” And she added that the defense could not distort the evidence provided by the Prosecutor’s Office and the victims.
(You can see: Prosecutor’s Office uncovers evidence against those captured for the attack on the School)
When giving the floor to the parties, the victim representative indicated that she will let the judge issue the amount she considers necessary, while Rodolfo Ríos Lozano, Arévalo’s defender, said that when the hearing is set up to read the sentence he will use the resources it deems necessary. The accused will remain deprived of liberty.
The five sentences
The conviction against Wilson Arévalo is the second against him, since he was already sentenced to 17 years and 3 months in prison for rebellion, financing of terrorism and organized crime groups and administration of resources related to terrorist activities and the organized crime.
In total, five people have been convicted, among whom are Ricardo Andrés Carvajal Salgar and Anyi Daniela Martínez, Luis Sebastián Mateus Vargas and Carlos Felipe Mateus. These last three for laundering money in favor of ‘Chaco’.
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On the other hand, there are proceedings in the trial stage against six people who were involved in the logistics of the attack. The accused are Andrés Felipe Oviedo Espinel, alias Jesús or Barbas, who would have received orders from the ELN Central Command for the attack.
While Angie Lorena Solano Cortés, alias Maco, is accused of accompanying the car bomb on a motorcycle. There are also Carlos Arturo Marín, Jessica Catherine Barrientos, Miguel Antonio Castillo and Álvaro José Mateus Vargas.
Carlos Lopez
Justice Editorial
In X: @CarlosL49
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