Within the framework of the national strike, the authorities reported the capture of 69 alleged perpetrators of looting, illegal possession of weapons and obstruction of public roads in Cali.
More than 50 MIO stations have been vandalized during the national strike protests.
Just this past weekend, 17 people were captured in the Siloé sector and four more due to disturbances in the Calypso area.
(Note: Siloé is a poverty stricken hillside settlement in the West of Cali akin to the favelas of Rio de Janeiro.)
According to the authorities, the most recent events occurred almost at the same time, since on the one hand the vandalization of an Éxito occurred, while in another part of the city a group of agents was attacked with firearms. The first of the cases, according to the deputy commander of the Cali Metropolitan Police, Colonel Guillén Amaya, occurred when a group of people tried to enter a department store chain, for which the authorities had to intervene, achieving thus the capture of 17 people.
On the other hand, the second case corresponds to the attack by several people on members of the Public Force in the midst of the protests. With the help of drones and the Police ‘Halcón’ helicopter, four people were detained.
"The alias El Gordo stands out, who tried to attack our policemen with firearms," said the officer. In this event, a dump truck was also seized, where according to the authorities, the owner was intimidated and forced to transport these people to get them out of the place.
Finally, the Deputy Commander of the Cali Metropolitan Police said that in the Yumbo area, there was also the capture of five people who were allegedly carrying out extortion checkpoints.
Armed attacks on (police) stations
On the other hand, the Cali Metropolitan Police yesterday rejected the vandalism that have occurred in the city in recent days. The new commander of the Cali Metropolitan Police, General Juan Carlos León Montes, gave details about the incident that occurred last Sunday, around 10:30 p.m. at the El Guabal station, where, using long-range weapons, a group of men attacked several of the uniformed men who were there.
“I want to make a public complaint about what happened at the El Guabal station, five subjects with rifles, fired at the station. There were seven police units there, resulting in two wounded officers, one of them in an arm and a knee, and the other in uniform has wounds on his right leg, "commented the Commander. As mentioned by the Metropolitan Police, in the framework of the investigations of this case, the vehicles that were used had already been identified and, furthermore, it would be hypothesized that this fact would be related to retaliation for drug trafficking.
“It is an attack that we did not expect from criminal gangs directly at the Police station. We already have the investigation underway, we are very focused on the fact that all the issues that we have done against drug trafficking in Cali would be linked to this criminal act”said the General. In addition, León reported that, after the attack on the El Guabal station, an event was recorded in the middle of which a vehicle ignored a traffic signal and several police officers reacted.
“Some uniformed men reacted, one person lost his life in the middle of the police reaction. That fact is already the subject of investigation by the Prosecutor's Office, we ask that the CTI take charge of the specialization, ”he said. Likewise, the director of the National Police, General Jorge Luis Vargas, also referred to this case and said that “three subjects fired more than 50 shots at the station, fortunately the wounded were not in serious condition. It is a fact of the greatest gravity; in that station there are some people captured for extradition purposes”. Meanwhile, the authorities reported that on Sunday night the El Lido Police Station was again vandalized and attacked with sharp objects, incendiary bombs and firearms. As detailed, in less than 20 days this location has been vandalized five times. In this regard, General Juan Carlos León stated that several hooded men attacked the station with stones, bombs and firearms. "We ask that these situations be avoided because it can cause us injured police officers and even more so when it is attacked with gasoline, we could have a tragedy."
In the same way, the Institution also rejected the disturbances and acts of vandalism that were registered last Sunday in the sector of the Thousand Days Bridge, where public order problems arose, in the middle of which a vehicle was set on fire and a motel was attacked.
https://www.elpais.com.co/judicial/van-69-capturados-por-presunto-vandalismo-en-cali.html
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