Bogota city police will step up security measures around the Cerro de Monserrate church, the top tourism attraction of Colombia’s capital, following mass robbery.
The decision comes after a massive armed robbery on Thursday during which eight armed men robbed ten tourists of their cars, capturing money, jewelry and electronic equipment, newspaper El Espectador reported.
As a consequence the city police reportedly stepped up security measures setting up three additional check-points on the streets leading to the Cerro de Monserrate church.
The Cerro de Monserrate church and lookout hosts thousands of visitors a day, ranging from worshipers, hikers, and tourists.
Commissioned in 1640 by the Governor of the Nuevo Reino de Granada, Mr. Juan de Borga, the church atop the cloud-scraping mountain was built in the name of Monserrate’s Morena Virgin whose sanctuary is located in Barcelona, Spain.
A monastery was later built atop the Bogota mountain, which since then has become a site of pilgrimage for many believers and tourists alike. In fact, it has become a “must see” destination.
MORE: Bogota’s Monserrate, a sightseers paradise