Officials of Colombia’s intelligence agency DAS intended to divert the investigation into the murder of Jaime Garzon to secure their own impunity, denounced a former delegate of the Inspector General’s Office.
The delegate, Leonardo Martinez, who participated in the original murder trial of journalist and comedian Garzon, announced on Thursday that shortly after the crime, both witnesses and evidence were corrupted by agents of the DAS, reported news station Caracol.
According to Martinez, who allegedly received death threats for this report, the investigation was primarily diverted by a criminal milieu, known as Wilson Javier ‘El Profe’ Llano who worked as an informant for the DAS.
The IG official mentioned examples of DAS malpractice during the investigation into the murder, such as the prevention of a female witness from giving her tesimony by claiming that officials “had been unable to locate her.”
Martinez asserted that this manipulation and corruption occurred while Jose Miguel Narvaez was deputy director of the DAS.
Narvaez was the first official to be formally connected to the murder of Garzon and was summoned on Wednesday to respond to accusations against him, made by ex-paramilitary commanders ‘Don Berna’ and ‘El Iguano’, which signaled Narvaez as the primary instigator of the crime.
Martinez concluded the report by stating that he believed DAS agents intend to “condemn other people so as to confound the investigation and protect the true executors.”