There may be more dead in a recent massacre attributed to infighting in Medellin’s underworld, reported newspaper El Tiempo Wednesday.
As one known crime boss denies involvement in the killings, police investigating Monday’s slaughter at a house in the town of Envigado have released more names, leading El Tiempo to believe there may be 13 rather than 9 dead as originally reported.
In addition to the bodies found in the house, rumors now say that some bodies were moved from the house by car, including that of a reportedly well-known model who had an 11-month-old baby.
The murders are being reported as the result of a “mafia summit” at the house to discuss leadership of the “Oficina de Envigado,” one of Medellin’s biggest crime syndicates. This was said to be the second of three planned meetings to decide who would lead the syndicate. One faction is thought to have committed the murders of the local crime bosses in order to gain control of the Oficina.
One of the suspects the police have pointed to, a crime boss known as “Pinchi,” talked to El Tiempo and denied any involvement in the massacre. Instead, the reputed criminal named several other figures, with the aliases of “Tom,” “Guateqe” and “Diego Chamizo”, claiming they were responsible for the killings.
Pinchi also linked the killings to the disappearance of another crime boss, “El Montañero,” in mid-December. The battle for succession is said to be taking place as a result of the imprisonment of the former head of the Oficina, known as “Sebastian.”
Police have still not confirmed the total number of dead and say they are investigating different hypotheses regarding who perpetrated the massacre. They have offered a reward for information about the killings.