The Colombian government Tuesday requested Venezuelan authorities to respect the rights of a Colombian Intelligence officer arrested in Venezuela on Saturday.
In a statement released Tuesday, the Colombia government denounced that four days after the arrest of DAS officer Julio Enrique Tacora Parra by Venezuelan military intelligence officers, the Venezuelan authorities have not made public the charges against the Colombian intelligence official.
According to the DAS, Tacora traveled on vacation to Venezuela on Friday, disregarding the Colombian government’s prohibiton for its officials to travel to the neighboring country. DAS also claims that Tacora was invited to Venezuela by a Venezuelan friend who works for the Venezuelan immigration and identification service. The DAS’ statement says that Tacora traveled from the Colombian border to the Venezuelan city of Maracaibo in his Venezuelan friend’s car.
Tacora’s arrest took place at a moment of high tension in the relations between Colombia and Venezuela. In July, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez decided to freeze relations with Colombia after the Colombian government announced an expansion of its anti-narcotics partnership with the US to include an incrrease of the US personnel in Colombian airbases.