The regional office of the prosecution office in Colombia’s third largest city, Cali was hit by multiple explosions on Friday. The defense minister ruled out a bomb attack.
Two explosions occurred within seconds of each other just before noon at the Prosecutor General’s Office in the center of Cali.
Authorities were quick to debunk speculation that the government building was hit by bombs or attacked with grenades.
According to local authorities, a short circuit in the evidence room triggered the explosion of various stored artifacts that were kept there as evidence.
“At the moment we rule out a terrorist attack in the center of Cali. A situation occurred in the building of the prosecution in the city,” Brigadier Hugo Casas tweeted half an hour after the double blast.
Al momento descartamos acción terrorista en centro de #CaliCo. Se trataría de una situación en el edificio de @FiscaliaCol de esta ciudad. @PoliciaColombia @Policia1020FM pic.twitter.com/jVzeKjBqAZ
— BG. Hugo Casas (@PoliciaCali) November 2, 2018
The local police claim was confirmed by Defense Minister Guillermo Botero from the northern city of Santa Marta where he and other top officials were taking part in a security council.
Botero was in the port city to inform himself of the recent kidnapping of two children and the high-profile kidnapping of the niece of late Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez and the recent arrest of top officials over their alleged ties to illegal armed groups.
But the explosions at the prosecution’s office in Cali, Colombia’s most violent city, had nothing to do to ongoing security issues in that city, according to Botero.
There is a room where the prosecution keeps some pieces of evidence that serve as proof. According to the firemen, a short circuit apparently caused an explosive device that was there to be activated. When it went off, it probably activated a few more.
Defense Minister Guillermo Botero
According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, “experts are analyzing the cause” of the allegedly accidental explosions and reiterated no people were hurt in the incident.