The Colombian national police announced that they are offering a $1 million reward for information leading to the capture of Medellin drug lord Ericson Vargas, alias “Sebastian.”
The announcement comes despite the fact that there are no warrants out for Sebastian’s arrest.
National police commissioner General Oscar Naranjo announced that he would “assume the personal and judicial risk” of issuing the reward without a current arrest warrant, because the violence wrecking havoc in Medellin is largely the result of gang warfare between Sebastian and his rival Maximiliano Orozco Bonilla alias “Valenciano.” The two are believed to be battling for control over the city’s underworld.
According to authorities, Sebastian has 25 illegal armed groups comprised of some 2,000 men under his command, while Valenciano is believed to control 32 groups and 1,500 men.
Sebastian is believed to have worked as a hitman for the now defunct Medellin criminal organization “the Office of Envigado” under former paramilitary “Don Berna,” who was extradited to the U.S. in May 2008.
Both Don Berna and Sebastian are also believed to have worked with “Los Pepes,” a group who fought against infamous drug lord at the beginning of the 1990s.
