Colombia’s national army commander celebrates his retirement on Wednesday amid an escalation of violence and corruption scandals.
At least 10 generals and dozens of other commanders were either arrested or sacked because of their alleged involvement in drug trafficking, extortion, arms trafficking, embezzlement, and illegal spying on journalists and the Supreme Court since President Ivan Duque took office in 2018.
At least 321 members of the security forces were killed after General Eduardo Zapateiro assumed control over the security forces in early 2020 and violence throughout Colombia deteriorated.
Drug trafficking
Retired General Leonardo Barrero
The scandals began in June 2019 when Colonel Elkin Argota was accidentally caught driving the fugitive drug lord from his hide-out in Bogota military barracks to the southern Putumayo province.
A month later, the commander in charges of Putumayo, General Jorge Hernando Herrera, told colleagues about his ties to drug traffickers from Cauca, which got him sacked in February after this audio was leaked.
Less than a week later, media revealed a prosecution report in which the former commander of the armed forces, General Leonardo Barrero, was accused of cooperating with a drug trafficker from the southwestern Nariño province.
The latest scandal followed persistent claims by Catholic bishops from the Choco and Antioquia province that the regional military unit cooperated with paramilitary group AGC, which is allegedly Colombia’s largest drug trafficking organization.
These claims were fiercely denied by the 7th Division, which controls this region in northwest Colombia.
Arms trafficking
The former commander of the 4th Brigade, employees of Colombia’s weapons manufacturer Indumil and the director of the National Army’s family welfare agency, Colonel Alexander Amado, were accused of arms trafficking in 2021.
According to the prosecution, former 4th Brigade commander Jorge Romero, provided armed to organized crime groups in Medellin and the neighboring city of Rionegro.
Amado and at least two of his subordinates allegedly managed a national arms trafficking network from the Tolemaida base in the central Tolima province, which also sold arms to groups formed by dissident factions of now-defunct guerrilla group FARC.
Illegal spying
Reitred General Nicacio Martinez and General Eduardo Zapateiro
Duque sacked his initial National Army chief, General Nicasio Martinez, in late 2019 after the president found that the army commander and military intelligence officials allegedly were spying on journalists, opposition politicians, the Supreme Court and even Duque’s chief of staff.
The scandal caused major uproar in Washington DC because the military was allegedly using American equipment that was meant to combat drug trafficking.
According to one of the officials that took part in the criminal activity, the illegally obtained intelligence information was sent to the president’s far-right party, the Democratic Center.
Kidnapping and extortion
Gaula forces (Image: National Army)
Months before the resignation of Martinez, the general’s nephew, Lieutenant Colonel Cesar Augusto Martinez, found himself implicated in kidnapping allegations.
Ironically, the general’s nephew was the commander of Colombia’s anti-kidnapping unit GAULA at the time.
Mora was quietly removed from his post in December last year despite prosecution claims that the Gaula chief was not involved in any criminal activity.
Two months before, the National Army confirmed that it was investigating the commander of the Special Forces Division, General Eduardo Mora, after extortion allegations lodged by eight of his subordinates.
Despite this investigation, Mora was transferred to Cucuta where he assumed control of the 8th Division earlier this year.
Three alleged convictions
President Ivan Duque and General Eduardo Zapateiro.
Zapateiro told newspaper El Tiempo in March that the army had opened 41 disciplinary investigations into allegedly corrupt military officials since early 2020 that resulted in three convictions.
None of these alleged convictions and investigations were mentioned in the National Army’s annual transparency magazine DANTE, which was published in April.
None of the 10 allegedly corrupt generals and the dozens of officials who found themselves embroiled in criminal investigations since Duque took office have been convicted.
The army’s allegedly corrupt commander will retire on Wednesday after ending his scandal-ridden military career with an exorbitant celebration of Colombia’s Independence Day.
The celebrations will be held without the 321 soldiers and police officers who were killed while Zapateiro was in office.