A “criminal network dedicated to migrant trafficking” was uncovered in Colombia. Through this organization – which used two routes to transport foreigners – they were able to “turn an illegal migrant into another Colombian, into an indigenous person with nationality rights.”

The company fell apart when an agent managed to infiltrate, Semana reports. When the network was dismantled, 24 people were arrested, the Colombian Public Prosecution Service said.

The agency specified that personnel from the CTI (Criminal and Judicial Investigation Technical Corps), the National Navy, the National Army and the Colombian Aerospace Forces participated in the investigation, with support from the HSI-ICE office of the US Embassy.

The alleged members of the criminal organization were arrested during operations deployed “in San Andrés Islas, Cartagena (Bolívar), Santa Marta (Magdalena), Maicao (La Guajira), Bucaramanga (Santander), Coveñas (Sucre) and Necoclí (Antioquia )”. .

The crime of the migrant smuggling network in Colombia

The network called itself La Agencia a Agencia and it is alleged that it “picked up illegal migrants of various nationalities to travel through Colombia and offer them different ways to continue their journey to the United States.” Curious details caught the attention of CTI investigators.

“Several migrants, surprised by authorities as they passed through Colombia, presented themselves with documents recognizing them as citizens, even though they did not even speak Spanish,” Semana reported.

Some even foreigners “had identity cards making them native citizens and so they traveled through Maicao or Barranquilla and boarded flights.”

New groups of undocumented immigrants “pay $10,000 or more” to coyoteros to transport them to the United States on private jets

How the migrant smuggling network operated in Colombia

The undercover agent was the key to unmasking those behind this network. It was discovered that they had the assistance of Register and Immigration officials.

A woman in Maicao pulled the strings of this illegality. Through WhatsApp, that woman “was in charge of requesting the data and photos of the migrants who hoped to become Colombian.”

The foreigner knew he had to pay a few million pesos.

According to the investigation, the woman contacted corrupt officials of the Registration and Immigration Bureau, and with the data in these entities they issued the documents with a new photo.

Semana emphasizes that within a few minutes the same infiltrated agent paid and obtained the document that granted him temporary status to travel around the country without any problems.

There was no need – the investigation found – for them to conduct background checks or arrest warrants.

The irregularity was serious: without even having the real data, he simply made up a name and shared the photo.

The power of money did the rest. By paying it was possible to become a Colombian indigenous person. With the numerical data of the indigenous population in La Guajirait was possible to gain access to the identification document, the undercover investigator discovered.

Those in line at “The Agency” had defined their roles: “One group would be responsible for obtaining documents such as college certifications, credit history, and real estate titles. “This is how they created false family and socio-economic profiles for nationals and foreigners seeking the issuance of visas.”

Darién Jungle: Drug traffickers use migrants to transport cocaine to the United States, Colombian police say

Illegal everything

The other illegal maneuver, elaborated by the Public Prosecution Service, consisted of offering a visa to migrants who were denied a visa to leave Colombia by land or sea towards Central America, and enter the United States through unauthorized steps .

For this purpose, they supposedly provided civilians with accommodation, food, and transportation to the Urabá region, where they eventually crossed the ‘Darién Gap’ to continue to North America.

On other occasions, “they transferred interested parties from various airports to the San Andrés Islands and there boarded boats bound for the shores of Nicaragua.”

The Public Prosecutor reported that “the people who left (in this way) were expected in Mexico and, with the help of an immigration agent from that country, known by the alias Mario, were placed at the disposal of the coyotes who irregularly moved them and “They placed them on American soil.”

Network dismantled

With the evidence, the network was dismantled and 24 people were arrested. For the crime of migrant smuggling, they arrested an official of Migration Colombia, who was responsible from the municipality of Capurganá for making the illegal offers.”

They have also arrested “officials of the Colombian Navy,” the aforementioned publication continues, and the investigation will not end until the role of certain registry employees is clarified.

Among those arrested, the Public Prosecutor’s Office said, are three women “allegedly responsible for contacting nationals and foreigners in Bogotá, Bucaramanga (Santander), Cúcuta (Norte de Santander), Medellín (Antioquia), Cali (Valle del Cauca ), Barranquilla (Atlántico) and Cartagena (Bolívar); and provide them with false documentation to process the visas.”

Also arrested was the alias “Patrón,” who is believed to be the leader of the group responsible for recruiting, transporting and sending migrants through illegal passages. This man is said to have ties with skippers and owners of hotels, hostels and restaurants.

Navy officials involved in this network are under investigation for failing to maintain maritime navigation controls. They also warned the criminal network about the location of the National Navy ships, to facilitate the transit of the boats carrying the migrants. These illegal actions depended on the payment of gifts that ranged between 3 and 10 million pesos (between 700 and more than 2,300 dollars).

With information from Semana and the Colombian Public Prosecution Service

(JO)