A 22-minute video distributed by the public relations department of the Nicaraguan army detailed how a convicted Colombian spy was tasked with stealing Nicaragua’s military secrets.
In the recording, Colombian national Luis Felipe Rios, revealed his primary mission was to ascertain the Central American country’s defense capabilities and the strategic projection of its military.
According to the footage, Rios also tried to obtain information on Nicaragua’s possible plans to form partnerships with Iran and Venezuela, buy weaponry from Russia and modernize their artillery, tanks and aircraft units.
In early July, a Nicaraguan court sentenced Rios to 16 years in prison for crimes related to espionage.
The 34-year-old Colombian, was arrested in the Nicaragua’s capital city Managua in mid-June after having been followed by the country’s authorities for over a year.
The convicted spy arrived in the country in 2010, apparently presenting himself as a Spanish citizen working for a publication that reports on security issues.
In mid-June, Amuro Alvarez Granera and Leonidas Castillo of the Nicaraguan armed forces were dishonorably discharged and tried for “revealing military secrets together with the crimes of espionage and disobedience,” according to a statement issued by the country’s military.