memorandum of justification concerning human ... - Just the Facts

UNCLASSIFIED
- 19 -
ties to the murders, is not serving his sentence since he now resides in the United States
after receiving refugee status due to credible threats against his life. On October 23,
2007, three AUC members (Leonardo Montoya Pubiano, Francisco Enrique Gómez
Vergaño, and Arnoldo Vergara Trespalacios) were sentenced to 40 years each for their
involvement in the case.
Operación Dragón
On October 8, 2008, the Prosecutor General‘s Office opened a hearing for two
lieutenant colonels, a major, and three civilians (no names given), on charges of alleged
aggravated criminal conspiracy and violation of the rights of assembly and association for
their involvement in ―Operación Dragón.‖ The inquiry process began November 19,
2008, and is ongoing. ―Operación Dragón‖ involved an alleged plot in 2004 to
assassinate leftist politicians and labor leaders in Cali. Berenice Celeyta Alayón, a labor
union leader, and Colombian Senator Alexander Lopez Maya, former president of
SINTRAEMCALI, allege that they were targeted for their work in support of
SINTRAEMCALI, a local labor union‘s campaign against the privatization of the Cali
Municipal Corporation (EMCALI), Colombia‘s third largest public utility company.
Orlando Valencia
There was no movement during the certification period in the investigations of two
policemen for their alleged role in the October 15, 2005, disappearance and homicide of
Afro-Colombian leader Orlando Valencia. Valencia was killed in Belén de Bajirá
(Chocó) by paramilitary forces, allegedly with collusion by the Colombian National
Police. The trial of the two members of the police, a captain (Edwin Harbey Arroyo
Cuervo) and a now retired sub-lieutenant (no name provided), for their alleged
involvement in the homicide and links to paramilitary groups began on February 27, 2007
(investigation opened October 9, 2006). The Prosecutor General‘s Office reported that in
2007, José Montalvo Cuitive, a palm oil farmer, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for
his alleged role in the homicide.
As was reported in previous certifications, witnesses, including community leader
Enrique Petro, testified in the case May 15-17, 2007, in Medellín, and asked the
Prosecutor General‘s Office for increased security, including armored cars, cell phones,
horses, and police protection. The government provided police protection and phones,
but Petro has stated he needs additional security. On July 12, 2007, the Prosecutor
General‘s Office linked two members of the AUC Bloque Elmer Cardenas to the case and
shortly thereafter, the Colombian National Police arrested one of them (Horacio Restrepo
Urrego). On September 18, 2007, two witnesses in the case, Miguel and Uco Alberto
Hoyos, were wounded by gunfire outside their homes. They were put under police
protection at a hospital in Apartadó. On October 14, 2008, unknown assailants killed
UNCLASSIFIED