The return of notorious drug lord Hector Restrepo Santamaria, aka “Perra loca” to Colombia after serving five years in a US prison has stoked fears of growing activity in Colombia’s criminal underworld.
Restrepo was arrested in 2010 and later sentenced to five years in prison for money laundering offenses. He is currently wanted by Colombian officials on drug trafficking and other charges, according to Semana magazine.
The release of several high profile drug criminals may add fuel to the fire as tensions are already high with neo-paramilitary groups and criminal gangs reportedly appearing in territory recently vacated by the FARC guerrillas.
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Restrepo took part in the demobilization process of the paramilitary group the AUC which was initiated by former president Alvaro Uribe in 2002, passing off as a leader of the southwestern bloc of the organization.
He is a well-known drug trafficker in Antioquia, and formed part of various criminal groups, including the notorious Office of Envigado.
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His release is the latest in a wave of drug traffickers and paramilitary members that are being freed after having served reduced sentences in jails across Colombia and in the United States.
Colombian authorities fear that some of the traditional drug alliances may be re-formed resulting from the release of the likes of Restrepo and have been keeping a close eye developments reported Semana magazine.
Together with the Public Prosecutor’s Office, we have been carrying out a work to identify whether these people are returning, and in some cases serious investigative processes are already being carried out in various parts of the country to act against those who have returned to commit crimes,”
General Jorge Luis Vargas Valencia – Director of Colombian National Police (Dijin)
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Additionally the transitional justice mechanism agreed upon between the government and the FARC as part of the peace process could facilitate the release of hundreds of former guerrillas with connections to the drug underworld.